Hogwarts School for Magical Beings
by NaruAndHarrHaremFan
Summary: What if the magical world had accepted magical creatures from the start? What if the founders had accepted not only witches and wizards but all manner of beings. Follow Harry as he enters a world of not only magic, but of werewolves, demons, spirits, and much more. MAJOR AU! Harry/harem MASS CREATURE FIC! Undertones of Negima! More info inside...
1. Chapter 1

**Warning, this story will be majorly AU. If you read something that you don't like that has been changed from canon, then you are more than allowed to exit out of this story and go find one that better suits you. This was writen for fun and I truly don't want to hear if you don't like what I'm doing with this. Suggestions are welcome, flames are not.**

**KEY NOTES: Lily Evans will be the same age as Harry, and will be in his school year. His mother will have been Susan Bones making her father and aunt from canon her brother andsisters in my story. Since there has always been debate about Susan's looks she will be a redhead with green eyes. Harry's looks will also be different.**

**Creatures: Demons, spirits, werewolves, vampires, halfbreeds, etc. Many different creatures, from many different cultures will all be a part of this story. If a creature is in this story but how it has come to be, isn't what your used to from other series then I did so on perpose. Harry will be a creature just as his parents were. Susan and James were different types of beings and while normally this would lead to him being a halfbreed, but since Susan's kind has never or rarely breed outside their own kind, Harry will end up as the first of his kind, a new breed to their world. What he will be is a very well known creature and how he comes about being one is very different from how they (the specics he will be) came to be in other pieces of fiction.**

**PAIRING/HAREM: Harry/Fleur/Hermione/Lily Evans = She is in no way related to Harry, therefore it is not incest. There will be a chance for other girls to be added to the group, but that will be up to those of you who go and vote on the poll that is up right now.**

**TAGS: Strong-Smart-Talented Harry, Harem, AU, NO Dumbledore or Weasley bashing, Elementals, and more things later on. **

**Lastly I'd like to thank my beta lilyevans12681998. Without her, this story would still be sitting on my hard drive.**

Albus Dumbledore, a man of impressive power, knowledge, and age sat behind his large wooden desk staring out the window of his office. The outside world and all that was happening in it was lost to him as he thought about his dear, departed friends James and Susan Potter and the fact that this was the year their son, Harry, would be starting his schooling.

Harry Potter. The boy was the main focus of the storm raging in the ancient man's mind. What was he to do about the boy and the situation that was sure to arise when it came time to sort him? Harry was seen as a beacon of hope to many for his defeat of the Dark Lord Voldemort at an age younger than a year old.

Much was thought to be known about the savior of their world and this was where one of Dumbledore's dilemmas arose. Should he let the truth of Harry and his mother's species be known to the world or follow the path of all those that had belonged to the blood of the Bones family had done and keep the boy's nature a secret.

It was common knowledge that his father had been the last of the Potters, a family of demons that were famous for producing amazingly powerful demons. But more so than this, they were revered worldwide for how their powers manifested and how it differed from the entirety of the rest of the demon species on this plane of existence.

Many a great thing would be expected of him as a result of the ancestry he gained through his father's blood. However, when added to it that he was also the son of Susan Potter nee Bones, the last of the Bones bloodline (a family just as famous as the Potters), one had a practical prince of the wizarding world on his or her hands.

The Bones were known for having the strongest witches and wizards in both combat and practical magic applications in the entire world. Many of history's greatest minds and warriors had carried the surname Bones with pride. The fact that they had accomplished so many astonishing accomplishments without a drop of magical creature blood passing through their veins made them all the more renowned. Or at least that was what the public thought.

The truth was that the Bones were the farthest thing from pure blooded witches and wizards. In reality, they were the last remaining remnants of an ancient race of beings born from magic itself. Their kind was thought to have died out over four millennia ago, during the time when the stalkers openly walked the world. It was in secret that they lived right under the noses of the entire magical world and would have continued to keep it that way had they not chosen to increase their number since the time they had gone into hiding. The last few members of the House of Bones were murdered during the war.

The Bones had long been a family that had believed that inbreeding kept their blood strong. And while most families that live by such beliefs were more times than not weakened until they finally died out, the Bones simply had too much magic in them to succumb to such a fate, and yet, it was this choice that eventually did lead to their end. Their refusal to take on mates outside their blood eventually led to smaller numbers over time until just before the war when they were so few of them that one could count their members on two hands.

That was until the beautiful little odd ball of their family, Susan, came along. At the time of her birth, there were only her parents, her two siblings, and two cousins left. Before ever coming to Hogwarts Susan was told she would one day bare her brother's and one of her cousin's future children, and had come to accept this as the law of her clan and a fate she could not escape.

During her time at school it had become clear she was the very best of what the Bones were known for, so much so that she had been forced to hold herself back all of her seven years away at school. But what had made her forget the law passed down by her family and the boredom of her school days was the heir to the Potter family, James Potter.

From day one when James (a boy who was almost as talented as Susan had been) had laid eyes on her, he had become smitten, never to look at another in the same way he did Susan. Her long red hair, intense emerald eyes, and skin that was the color of honey had caused a deep infatuation for him that was shared on her behalf as well. For years they had fought their feelings for each other, but at the Yule Time Ball in their fourth year, both had broken down and had admitted their feelings for one another. In secret the two had started a relationship that wouldn't come to air until their sixth year, and that would go on to last until the night they died all those years later on that tragic Samhain night.

Albus chuckled as he recalled the small little redhead chasing a messy haired, blue eyed boy; his small single horn peeking out of his hairline and his long thin tail that ended in a forked spade flailing around wildly behind him as the girl perused him through the halls after he had stolen a kiss on Christmas night, exactly one year before they had finally come together.

Though Dumbledore's features were still those of someone reliving a happy memory, tears had escaped his twinkling blue eyes. _'Why is it the young are so often taken before their time?'_ He thought fighting down the all too common feeling of helplessness that he experienced whenever thinking of those who had been lost during the war.

His reminiscing of days past had hit on the reason why he was so deep in thought. What would he do when Harry took part in the Awakening?

James and Susan, like all magical beings who wished for their children to attend Hogwarts, had used the spell to seal his powers away before he was born. This was done in an attempt to keep the children of ordinary witches and wizards that held no type of creature blood in them, safe from hurting themselves and others with their magic. On the other hand, those who held special powers like demons, spirits, and many other creatures belonging to their world did so to keep their children's powers in check. This act also held the added bonus for those beings who had appearances that could not pass for solely human a form to go into the outside world in. By the time the child was released from the magical seal they had been placed under, their magic would take hold of the human form they had been in for the first eleven years of their life and would make it so they could shift back and forth at their leisure.

The problem was that both those born of the Potters and the Bones all gained physical changes at the Awakening. Susan and all the others of the Bones line that had attended Hogwarts had been able to use a special spell to keep their changes a secret. The problem was all who knew the spell were dead, and the only way Dumbledore could think of finding the spell would be when Harry claimed his inheritance on his eleventh birthday. He would need to take the boy to his vault and get him to retrieve the spell from one of the many tomes in the Bone's vaulted library. But this raised a new question; did Dumbledore want Harry to hide what he was?

Albus had discovered the Bones family secret at an early age thanks to his natural curiosity, or as his brother had always called it, 'being nosey.' He had always seen the hiding of their existence as a mistake. The whole world deserved to know that one of its most cherished magical races still walked the earth.

But whether or not he should let the truth about the Bones come out wasn't his only dilemma. The question that could be just as important as the first was, 'what type of changes would Harry be forced to go through once he was awoken?'

Demons while not all being evil did have powers that where based in darkness. While the Bones had always been creatures of light, they would have earned a title darker than demon if most knew of the type of magic they used. He had already seen signs of the two natures clashing within the boy the day he had entered this world. It all had been in the newborns stunning, yet unnerving eyes.

So what would happen when darkness and light finally combined after so many years of being held together and yet apart? Would it lead to a tragedy or a miracle, good or evil, something beautiful or grotesque?

Dumbledore scoffed lightly to himself. That last thought had been foolish on his part. There was no way a child of James and Susan Potter could ever be known as ugly, when both were the center of many a crush and broken hearts during the span of their life time. He smiled as he remembered one boy who had been turned down by Susan. He had claimed it should be illegal for two people as good looking as they were to be near one another - that it took away any chance of others possibly courting them.

His musing was called to a halt as the sound of someone beating at his door with a dire need reached his unaffected by time hearing.

"As it has always been, Minerva, my door is open." As the tall and wide polished door swung open, Albus composed himself for his old friend. Noting the borderline hysterical look in the cat animagus' eyes he sat forward giving her his full attention. "What is it that's bothering you, my friend?"

"Albus," she breathed heavily, her hand pressed firmly to her chest. "It's about Har- Mr. Potter."

Though he showed no outward signs of it, having the boy he had just been thinking so intently about suddenly brought up like that had shocked the elderly yet sprightly man.

Not knowing her words had gotten to her longtime friend, McGonagall continued on. "I was doing some last minute checking on the acceptance letters that were to be sent out today, when I came across Mr. Potter's." As she stood and handed him an envelope he knew what the problem would be. "The self-addressing quill can't locate him. That means he is no longer at the orphanage you left him," pausing she sent him a stern glare for his choice of arrangements for two of her favorite students' child. "It's possible someone has him in a place that's unplottable, or he's under a fidelius somewhere."

Dumbledore smiled as he reached into his desk pulling out his large bowl of lemon flavored sweets. Holding it out, he offered her one. "Care for a lemon drop," he asked. He ignored her venomous look as he placed the sour sweets back in his desk. "I must say, I do so love them."

"Albus!" McGonagall hissed, rising to her feet in fury. "He could be under someone's Cruciatus as we speak, and here you are going on about your disgusting sweets like Trelawney does cooking sherry and her student's deaths!"

"Minerva," Dumbledore said in an uncharacteristic tone, causing McGonagall to flinch and sit back down. "I can assure you that Harry is perfectly safe, and that I take the protection of my students, past, present, and future very seriously." Albus smiled kindly at how abashed she looked. It reminded him of the time in her final year as a student in these halls, when she had been caught in the broom closet with her future husband. "Plus there's no reason to say such things about Trelawney... or my sweets. Neither has ever wronged you and do not deserve such harsh words."

Only the slight twitch of her lips showed the amusement she felt toward the man's small rant. "I apologize, Albus, for my rash words. I should have never assumed, or suggested such things." Smoothing out her robes, she folded her hands neatly in her lap, fixing him with a questioning look. "Now then, would you be so kind as to inform me where Mr. Potter is located?"

"It's now my turn to apologize to you Minerva. I have lied to not only you, but Severus, Remus, and the others about the boy's whereabouts all these years," Albus admitted solemnly. He truly regretted his act of deceit, but knew the boy would need protection that only he and one other could give him. "In an attempt to keep him safe and away from the spotlight his fame would surely bring him, I left his care to the only person I knew who could protect him as well as I could. He has spent the last ten, almost eleven years seeing all this world has to offer, and has been none the wiser of who or what he is. Nor does he have any knowledge of the hidden world filled with those who love him for a reason he can't recall, or of those who hate for the same exact reason."

McGonagall looked to be upset at first but the more the famous wizard spoke the more she calmed down. She knew exactly who he was speaking of and there really wasn't anyone better suited for raising the boy. "I'm guessing this arrangement, is the reason behind why I've seen very little of your partner these past eleven years," McGonagall stated knowingly. "Harry's been with Gellert all this time, has he not?"

"Yes he has," Albus beamed. "Soon they will come back to us, my Gellert... and young Harry as well."

HSFMB

"Again!" Snapped a tall elderly man to the young boy lying before him. The child struggled for air as he fought to push himself to his feet.

The old man was tall and dapper looking in his expertly tailored suit, his long grey hair reaching to his shoulders. His aquamarine eyes projected their owner's intelligence and were as sharp as the steel of the rapier he was pointing at the downed boy. "Is this all you're capable of? You really are just a cat eyed freak!"

The boy gritted his teeth as he picked himself up off the floor. His two long daggers held in a reverse grip before him as he glared venomously at his teacher. "You wrinkled son of a bit-" he growled out in a light Dublin accent, only to be stopped as the old man's rapier cut into his cheek making him hiss angrily. "Dammit Gellert, I'll kill you, I swear it!"

The now identified Gellert Grindelwald sent his young charge a bored look just to annoy the child. It was too easy to set the boy off, all one had to do was to know the right buttons to push and he'd lose all sense of self control. Like with his eyes, the boy had a condition known as Heterochromia, meaning his eyes were unlike most people's and were each their very own distinct color. The right was as green as any emerald and burned as if there was fire inside, while the left was a cobalt blue that was as sharp as Gellert's own. Anyone who spoke of them that wasn't an attractive female earned the boy's ire, which was exactly why Gellert did it so often.

"Far better than you have tried," he commented off handedly, waving his hand dismissively to his student's threat. "Though, on the off chance there's a deity out there that choses to take pity on you, Cat-eyes, and decides to aid you in your quest to kill me, I think I'll lock my door tonight."

Having enough of the man's taunts, the boy rushed forward with his blades held at the ready. Reaching his teacher, he lashed out with what would have been a punch had he not held a blade. Gellert dodged the blow and blade both by taking the smallest of steps back and was forced to do so again when his attacker tried to hook him with his dagger in the side using the same hand.

As time went on the boy's speed picked up and so did the ferocity of his attacks. His swings at his teacher were becoming more and more wild as his anger grew. His fury was fueled by Gellert dodging or blocking his attacks with as little effort as he could.

Turning so his side was presented to Gellert, he swung his left blade overhead at the man's face in a windmill-like motion while at the same time he also swung up with his right, trying to gut him. Gellert having not expected such a tactic reacted instinctually. Spinning around the boy he brought his knee into the youth's side. Letting out a pain filled gasp the boy felt his ribs snap at the same time the power behind the blow lifted him off his feet and into the man's raised fist as he brought it down and into his skull.

The boy with the blue and green eyes was unconscious before he ever hit the floor. Sighing, Gellert reached into the jacket of his suit to pull out his wand. As he levitated his charge onto the bed he had conjured he looked him over for any additional damage he had caused besides that done to his ribs and skull.

The boy was by any stander a handsome young man, taking after his father in the looks department with hints of Susan's beauty thrown in to make him look all the better. He was tall for his age and from all the physical training Gellert had put him through; his body was showing early signs of what it would one day be.

Gellert couldn't fight the chuckle that escaped him as he took in the boy's hair. The back which was shorter than all the rest was just long enough to place in a small ponytail at the base of his skull. The rest hung just a ways past his chin, wild and untamed. He had seen a teenager in Paris that had the same style and had been dying to do the same since. It was only recently that the front had grown long enough to do as he wanted with it.

He had just finished healing the boy's ribs when a blinding flash of light appeared overhead. Gellert having spent many a decade with his lover, Albus, was accustomed to the phoenix's love of suddenly appearing. The immortal bird flew around them, letting out light trills from high above before landing at the foot of the boy's bed. Looking at the now fine child, Fawkes sent a piercing glare at his master's mate.

"Don't look at me that way, Fawksy," Gellert ordered lightly, letting out a chuckle when the bird trilled in annoyance at his use of the nickname it hated. "Harry will be perfectly fine after he gets some much needed rest."

Gellert was treated to another one of Fawkes's trills, this time with a question only he could hear attached to it.

"It's not my fault he got hurt. I've never been the best when it comes to dueling without a wand!" Gellert defended, standing up from the crouched position he had taken as he healed his student to stare unflinchingly into the creature's intense coal colored eyes. "Only my years of training with Albus in the use of swords allow me to act as if he's not a problem anymore. He's getting increasingly better with each training session. I don't know if I'm more excited, or fearful of what he will become once his parent's blood awakens within him."

Fawkes continued to look into the man's eyes for a few moments before finally breaking the contact and going back to staring at Harry. They were silent for a time, neither making a noise as they watched over the last Potter as he slept peacefully.

After a time, Fawkes let out a small trill that created a small disk of fire that hovered a foot over the unconscious boy's chest. Before Gellert could question the bird's actions a letter fell through the small gathering of fire and onto the boy's still sleeping form.

"So," Gellert muttered to himself, his eyes fixated on the off-white envelope. "I can finally be honest with the boy." Fawkes gave a single quick trill filling the room with happiness, before disappearing in the same bright flash he had appeared in.

HSFMB

Harry awoke hours later with his muscles aching and burning from his days training. Sitting forward, he propped himself up on the bed as he looked around the room. He was unsurprised to find himself in the room that they had been using for his training. As of late, Gellert had been harsher than ever before during their training sessions, and had taken to ending all their spars with him making sure he lost consciousness.

Sighing, Harry ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head tiredly. "How the hell does he always have a spare bed laying around for me?"

Harry had spent all of his life traveling and training with the old man. Along the way he had been fortunate enough to have made friends with those who could impart their knowledge upon him. In the states he had taken to learning music like a fish to water. In Paris he had hit it off with a street artist who had taught him the beginnings of becoming a great artist. Since that time Harry had become as talented with a piece of coal and paintbrush as he was with a guitar.

In his short time of existence, Harry had been blessed to have been able to learn so much from so many different, amazing people. And yet, he had failed time and again to learn one thing that bugged him as much as when the old man called him 'Cat-eyes.' How was it that Gellert always had exactly what they needed, even when he had failed to bring said thing with them to where they were? It was like he could just make things appear out of thin air, and it bugged Harry more than anything else not knowing the man's method to obtaining what they needed.

Looking at the clock he saw that it was almost time for his daily meditation session. Gellert had started him in on the art of calming and controlling his mind the day he had turned seven. He said it would help in everyday life and that it would be very important later on in life. Harry didn't think he was that bad at it, but Gellert felt differently, saying that if he had true control over himself, he wouldn't throw a 'temper tantrum' any time someone commented on his eyes. Secretly, Harry thought he was just pointing out a single flaw as a way to keep him from getting a big head.

Wanting to take a shower before he settled in and started his meditation, he made to stand up when he noticed something with a light weight shift from his lap to the floor. Looking confused, he reached down and picked it up to find it was a strange looking envelope that had his name on it. Along with his name was the number of the private training room he was in and the name of the resort they were staying at.

Harry stared at the letter in bewilderment. Not only was it strange that someone would know where they were (he kept in touch with many of those who had taught him various things, but the letters usually took forever to find him), but to know what room he would be in when he received it was just creepy.

His curiosity getting the better of him, he flipped the envelope intent on finding who the letter was from, only to stop when he found the envelope sealed in the most colorful of waxes he had ever laid eyes. Giving it an appraising eye, he was sure that he had never before witnessed the coat of arms it bared.

Harry ran a finger over the wax seal, instinctively knowing it was a sign of great importance. Being mindful to not destroy the seal, he carefully pealed the envelope open before pulling out a folded piece of parchment.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to attend Hogwarts School for Magical Beings. Enclosed i-_

_"Incendio!"_ Gellert said from behind Harry, stopping him from finishing the letter. Knowing his master's voice, he turned going to his knees, planning on telling the man about the odd letter he had found, when he was forced to abandon it and the bed as a jet of flame flew toward him.

Coming out of his dive he rolled to his feet turning to see the bed engulfed in flame, filling the room with the snapping sound of burning wood. He looked over to where his caretaker's voice had come from, only to see the man pointing a long thin white stick that had what looked to be berries carved down its shaft pointed at the now ablaze bed.

Maybe it was the first line of the letter he hadn't had the chance to finish that sent the word to the fore front of his mind, but at the moment only one thing was on his mind. _'Magic!'_

Gellert met his student's startled gaze with one of disinterest. Pointing his wand at his charge, he once again uttered an incantation. _"Expecto Patronum!"_

Harry's eyes doubled in size when from his teachers stick burst forth an overly large, silvery-white lion that charged straight for him. As he reached for his hip where he kept his daggers he was just able to make out though the bright light given off by the animal the face of a woman where the lion's should have been.

"Sphinx," he gasped in astonishment. Grasping both his blades, he didn't bothering with drawing back to add power to his throw, choosing instead to go with speed by throwing them from his hip. He felt a swell of pride when he saw the blades about to enter the beast's chest, but that feeling was quickly over powered by shock when both steel blades passed right through her.

Unseen by Harry the man who had been like a grandfather to him was forced to catch both weapons with his free hand after they had passed through his patronus. Had he not stopped the boy's weapon of choice, Gellert would have taken the blades to the chest just as they had been intended to do to his spirit guardian.

Shaking off his surprise Harry went into a fighting stance, knowing his chances of fighting the shining creature and coming out alive were astronomical. His only hope would be the Egyptian beast's intangibility only applied to weapons and that he'd be able to land the worlds luckiest hit. He didn't even attempt to add in his odds of winning if Gellert himself was to enter the fight.

However, before the creature ever reached him it started to slow down causing Harry to relax his stance. As the magical glowing beast drew closer to him, a sense of happiness and tranquility spread through his chest. Enjoying the feelings that he knew was coming from the creature he started toward it in the hope that a closer proximity to the sphinx would increase the feeling.

Coming face to face with the creature, its beauty which before had been obscured from him by its shining light became apparent to the young boy. He found himself wishing the being's intense glow would fade so that he could better make out its lovely features. A slight twitch of the sphinx's lips had him moving still closer to the beautiful beast's mouth; he didn't want to miss anything such a marvelous creature would have to say.

Leaning forward there was less than an inch separating his face from hers. "Boo," the sphinx deadpanned in Gellert's voice causing Harry to jump. He had yet to recover from the surprise of its voice, when the shining creature faded away taking its positive feelings with it.

"That feeling you're experiencing is the loss of the positive energy making up the sphinx as it fades combined with the glamour I placed on it falling away with it." Gellert explained. Walking toward the young boy, he flicked the wrist holding his wand, banishing the bed and the flames that were consuming it away.

Shaking his head and blinking his eyes rapidly, Harry took the offered knives he had thrown in an attempt to protect himself, when his teacher held them out for him to take. "What the hell was that?" He demanded. Now that the creature was gone his head was a lot clearer, making it possible for him to realize how daft of him it had been to go walking up to such a dangerous creature as he had. Especially when said creature shouldn't exist outside the carvings of a pyramid wall.

"A demonstration," Gellert answered at the same time he summoned two high backed chairs. Harry stared wide eyed at the display of magic. He had of course just seen the man shoot fire at him with a little stick and summon a glowing Egyptian myth before his very eyes, but there was something about the man before him - a person he had until a couple of hours ago thought he had known - summoning something as simple, and at the same time amazing, as a chair that left Harry speechless.

"Sit down," Gellert commanded. When Harry had taken a seat the man continued. "I assume you read your letter, correct?"

Harry snorted, fighting back a chuckle, before fixing his teacher with an annoyed look. "No, I didn't. I had only just read the part about me being accepted into a school for 'magical beings', when some dumbass tried to set me on fire."

Gellert paid the boy's annoyed look no mind, waving a hand dismissively at his attempt to insult him. "It matters not," he told the fuming boy. Seeing his outraged look and the tall tale signs he was about to explode Gellert explained. "The letter wouldn't have given you the information you would have wanted and in the end would have left you with more questions than answers. It is why I demonstrated the pittance of the spell work I did, to validate the existence of magic and the eclipsed world that accompanies it."

"Well you certainly made your point." Harry commented dryly. Reaching up, he rubbed circles on his temples in an attempt to ease the throbbing in his head. "I'm too damn young to have a blasted migraine."

"Sometimes I regret taking you to see the world," Gellert said loud enough for Harry to hear, even though he was speaking to himself. Giving a flick of his wand, a vial of red substance flew from outside the room coming to a stop level with Harry's head. "For as mature as our travels have made you, it has also had the unfortunate result of giving you the vocabulary of a sailor, along with a stream of other bad habits."

"I only have a bad mouth around people who succeed at pissing me off." Harry defended himself, taking a moment to stop gazing suspiciously at the suspended vial to glare accusingly at his teacher. "And what is a bad habit to you is common place for society today. It's not my fault you're a thousand years old, and that anything that doesn't involve me bowing to your greatness is seen as disrespectful."

"Take the potion before I force it down your throat, vial and all!" Harry uncorked the glass container and gave the red liquid a sniff, grimacing at the smell he turned the bottle up and downed its contents in one go. "Now then, I'm sure you have a number of questions you want answered."

Harry didn't say anything at first, he was too busy coughing, the horrendous taste of the potion getting to him. "What was that," he groaned, throwing the vial across the room. "Poison?"

"No, it was a potion made to relieve headaches." Gellert had used his wand to vanish the vial before it had caused a mess. "Most potions are supposed to taste awful."

"I can see why they would do that," Harry said clearing his throat. "Giving them a bad taste makes it less likely for one to become addicted to them. After all, take enough medicine and it turns to poison."

Gellert nodded. "Correct. More times than not, only poison and potions aimed at controlling you are sweet." He was pleased when Harry looked to be taking the information seriously. "Remember that you above all others will be subject to attacks by those who hate you and those who will attempt to control you for all that you have to offer."

"Why would people aim for me?" Harry asked looking confused. "I'm no one special!"

"We'll get to that in a minute," he told the boy. "First I want you to think back to what the letter said and what it revealed to you."

Giving it a few seconds thought, he replied. "That I've been allowed into a school called Hogwarts - which if you ask me is the dumbest name I've ever heard of," Harry commented. Gellert was forced to use his occlumency shields to keep from rolling his eyes at his commentary. "The only thing that stuck out besides the terrible name was the part about it being a school for 'Magical Beings'... What does it mean by that - are there things out there other than sorcerers?"

"It should be a given, but yes there is." Harry was starting to get over the shock of what had happened to him and was beginning to get excited. "Vampires, werewolves, animal and nature spirits, half breeds, purebloods, a large variety of demons, the fallen races, and a numerous other beings. Any creature deemed responsible enough for his or her own actions, will be allowed to attend Hogwarts as long as they fill certain requirements."

"Wait, there are really all those creatures in this world?" Asked a once again stunned Harry. "How does the world not know about them? And why in the world, are there demons allowed in a school?"

"The reason we have been able to hide from the outside world as we have is simple. Magic!" Gellert answered. "And when I say demons I don't mean those who come from the 'Regni Calamitatis' or in English, Realm of Calamity. They're known as Higher Demons and rarely leave their plain of existence."

"The demons I spoke of and that live in this world are the descendants of higher demons, or in the case of your father's family, the descendants of a human who had the power to overthrow a higher demon and seize their power as their own." Gellert informed him, choosing to ignore his gaping student. "Just because someone is a demon doesn't make him or her evil. It's the same for those who are the legacy of those of a lighter nature - what powers you are born with do not rule who you are!"

"WHOA! Wait a minute here," Harry commanded, rising to his feet to glare at the elderly man. "You're telling me after years of asking you about my parents, and only receiving half assed answer of 'they were the best type of people' and 'they had more love for one another than could ever possibly be put into words', you decided to drop a bomb like this? How well did you know my family and why have you kept what you know from me?"

"I kept all I could from you because it wasn't time for you to know yet. I didn't tell you anything because I doubt I'd have the will power to stop myself from telling you everything." Gellert said with an uncharacteristic remorseful look. It was this look that calmed Harry more than anything else. "I'm truly sorry for keeping all that I have from you over the years."

Harry nodded his understanding and acceptance of the man's apology. "So I'm a demon," he stated, looking down at himself as if to see if he was turning red. "Is that why my eyes are the way they are?"

"Yes and no. The reason behind your case of Heterochromia is your father's demon nature clashing with your mother's... lighter nature."

"What was my mother's nature?" Harry had leaned forward as he asked his question, anything on his parents was worth knowing - more so than even knowledge of the magical world.

"Susan was an oddball when it came to her kind - a black sheep if you would." Gellert said, nodding to himself. "Her people were very proud, arrogant people, who looked down on all other races. They felt that they were above all others, and many today would agree with that sentiment... myself included."

Harry stared at the man before him as if he had grown a second head. Gellert rarely gave complements, feeling that you as a person knew yourself best and that if you felt that you had done something worthy of praise, then you didn't need him to tell you what you already knew. So for him to say such a thing for an entire race of creatures blew Harry's mind.

"Her people - your people, were gifted with the ability to commune with all of nature," Gellert spoke with a hint of longing in his voice that Harry failed to hear. "Their skill in magic has gone unmatched since the time of their extinction and their prowess in battle has given birth to a number of legends."

"There is so much that set them apart from all the rest. It is very much a tragedy that you are the last of a once divine, yet flawed race."

"If they were so amazing, then how is it that they died out?" Harry asked feeling a deep sense of loss. "Is the reason people will aim for me because of my mother's people?"

Gellert looked at him grimly. "Your heritage from both your mother and father would be enough to make you famous, but that isn't why you'll be aimed for, though it will draw out some who will want to hurt you." Harry's face was set in a grimace; he was starting to realize Hogwarts wasn't going to be just a lot of time spent waving pretty sticks. "You're the last son of two powerful families. Both of which were very wealthy and powerful, add to this the fact that your good looking and famous for an entirely different reason and you'll have a bull's eye on your back."

"What possible reason would I have to be famous other than who my family was?"

"First off, your mother's race was a secret. Only a small number of individuals knew what she was." Harry displeasure at only just now learning all this about his family, was showing on his face and in the tense way he was holding himself. It just wasn't right that so much had been kept from him but he knew Gellert had his reasons for keeping quiet. "They were hunted to near extinction millennia ago. And before you ask, no I don't know specifics about what happened to them. All I do know is that the ones who hunted them and many other species of magical creatures and even plain witches and wizards were groups of mundanes called Stalkers. There are many groups of these stalkers alive to this day that still practice the same hunting arts as their forefathers did."

Harry's lips had become a thin line as he listened to Gellert. "You said 'near extinction', how did they keep from dying out for such a long time?" He asked trying to keep a level voice. "And how is it there are still families of mundane hunters - these stalkers still out there? You would think some witch or wizard would do something to stop them."

"To keep themselves hidden, your mother's family took on a tradition that a majority of our world follows. Even the higher demons that disregard all laws practice it."

"Well... what is it?"

"The sealing of the power and forms of our young." Harry pressed a hand to his chest in a motion that was meant to ask 'me as well'? Gellert nodded to him before picking up where he left off. "We do this in an attempt to protect our children from their own powers and abilities, while at the same time shielding others from those same powers. By the time the binding of your powers are removed, you will be able to slide back into this form whenever you please."

"That means what I look like now, isn't the real me?" Harry asked trying to wrap his head around such a thing. The face he had woken up to everyday of his life wasn't really his. It was a lie. "What do I really look like?"

"No, you're wrong," Gellert said disagreeing with him. "This form is a part of you; your magic has made it so. As for what you really look like, I'm not sure. There are no records of your mother's kind mating with anyone outside their own race. There's no telling what kind of physical changes this will bring out in you." Harry felt a momentary flash of fear at the thought of turning into some kind of deformed monster, but he quickly pushed the feeling down using the meditation techniques Gellert had taught him.

"Once your father's powers were unsealed, he looked almost completely the same as before." Gellert told him. "The difference being that he gained a tail and a single small horn on the right side of his forehead. In later years, his fingernails became slightly more claw-like and he grew a pair of bat-like wings that your mother adored."

A small chuckle escaped Harry as he stared off into space trying to picture the man from the single picture of his parents he had, with all the added physical changes Gellert had described. With the impish smile James had worn in the picture, he couldn't help but laugh at the thought that his father would look more like a devil than he would a demon.

"As for your other question about the stalkers, the Ministry of Magic nor anyone else can't act against them legally. When the law was passed to hide ourselves away from the world, it was agreed upon by those in power that they would let the mundanes forget about us with time. This choice has had the adverse effect of denying us the right to erase the memory of those few whom have passed down the knowledge of our existence from one generation to the next. It's unfortunate that those who remember are those who wish harm upon magical races."

Harry was silent for a time as he pondered over all he had been told. The sheer amount of information he had received was overwhelming, but there were at least two other questions that he needed answers to. "And the reason behind my 'fame'?" He asked not putting much stock in the man's claim that he was famous.

Gellert gave him a concern look. "You well know that your parents were murdered." He said getting a nod from a stone faced Harry. "What you don't know is that the same man who killed them, attempted to do the same to you."

Harry's eyes flashed dangerously. "How could he manage to kill both of my parents, but somehow manage to fail in doing the same to me?"

"Because when he tried taking your life, something happened - what no person knows." Seeing the question that was coming Gellert had went ahead and answered. "Whatever it was that took place that night destroyed his body and ended a very bloody war."

It didn't escape Harry that his mentor had said the man's body was 'destroyed', not that he was dead. But if his body was gone then so was the man... wasn't he? Harry found himself wondering if it was possible for there to be creatures out there who could escape death... and if he could find a way to do the same himself.

"The man responsible for your parent being taken from you, and the deaths of numerous others was a terrorist to the magic world, and had he not been stopped, would have set his plans for the rest of this world into motion." Gellert said in a voice laced with remorse causing Harry to look at the man strangely. Paying the boy's inquisitive look no mind, he continued where he had left off. "He was a man with gilt-edged skills in magic, especially when it came to his use of the dark arts. This led to him being feared by all of Britain."

"Charismatic as he was, it was all too easy for him to lure people into his twisted and dark way of thinking."

"And what was his way of thinking?" Harry asked, wondering what type of goal a man like that had that would justify his actions and the death of even one person. "Why would any... man want to kill so many people?"

"He wanted the world," Gellert stated drawing a raised eyebrow from Harry. "He wanted to rule the world and all that was in it. But he knew that if he tried to take it without the full support of the magical world, then there would be no way for him to obtain victory. So he started out with ridding magical Britain of all those who didn't agree to those of magical blood ruling over mundanes. He would have moved on to other magical communities and eventually the rest of the world, had he not been stopped."

Gellert gave his student time to process all he had been told. It'd be a lot for anyone to take in that there was a hidden world out there full of magical creatures that either saw you as their savior, or as the person who took away the revolutionary who would have led the magical world to its rightful place above the filthy muggles.

"You may be able to handle all you have been told better, if you were to take a nice long shower," suggested Gellert as he rose to his feet. His normal persona was once again back in place, giving him the air of a person who rarely cared about anything. "After you get out of the bath, do your meditation. I will soon start teaching you the very reason behind why I have had you learning to control your mind and emotions all these years."

"When you've finished with all that, we will be heading for Britain." Gellert informed Harry as he started for the exit. Harry rose to his feet, ready to object to the sudden plan on leaving their current destination, but was cut off by Gellert before he could do so. "Our current time zone puts us a great number of hours ahead of Great Britain. You'll have plenty of time to rest once we arrive."

"Wait a second," Harry called running up to the man. "I have one more question."

"Yes?"

"What was my mother?" Harry asked breathlessly, her culture and what little he had heard about them had fascinated him. "Her species, you never said what they were."

Gellert said nothing as he turned and made for the exit. Harry mistaking his actions as the man disregarding him took an angry step forward, but was stopped when a book flew through the door and over Gellert's shoulder as he exited the room. Catching the book, he could instantly tell it was extremely old from the feel of its bindings.

Running a hand over the fading title on the cover of the tome, he read each word out loud as his hand came into contact with them. "_Born of Magic: Elven Culture._"

**Yeah so nothing much going on in the first chapter, next one will be more than just hearing a loosely told back story.**

**As I was writing this I was wondering if anyone used the actors from the HP movies as the visuals when reading fiction? I know the only people from the movies I use are Hermione, Voldemort, and forth year Weasley twins. For eveyone else I end up taking actors from other works, like when I read about Fleur I picture her as Daenerys from Game of Thrones. **

**For those of you who have read my other HP story and are worried about this Harry ending up with powers the same as the one from S2ndC, don't. **


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: I'd like to thank all of you who reviewed last time, the support was great and every review means the world to me. There are a few things to be noted: This takes place in current times unlike canon. Fleur will only be a year older than Harry in this story and will not have a accent. There is NO rule or law against using magic outside of school besides the use of it in front of muggles. Since Harry was raised traveling he will and is supposed to be using terms that most British wouldn't use. That's about all I can tell you without spoiling what happens in the chapter. Big thanks to Tracer28 for beta-ing this chapter.**

* * *

Harry Potter was seconds away from pulling his hair out.

It had been a few days since he had learned about the magical world and since he and Gellert had come to Great Britain. A majority of this time he had spent on his own trying to learn all he could about magic and the creatures he was likely to encounter in the near future. And this was where his current bout of agitation stemmed from.

Gellert had given him a book on demons to sate his yearning to learn about his father's species, knowing that he would without a doubt come across demons during his time at Hogwarts and that the more he knew about them the less likely he was to offend someone. He would have continued to learn about his mother's heritage from the book about elves, but had been informed by the same person who had gifted him the tome that it was mostly made up of speculation on their culture and that the same could be said for most literature on their species.

When Harry had found out about the uselessness of the book he had sent it crashing into his teachers face, having lost control of his emotions for once without his eyes being a factor. It was his unfortunate luck Gellert had his first training session involving magic planned for later that same day. As it was now, Harry couldn't be in the same room as the man without fearing the most evil curse ever made - the stinging hex.

"Arggh, why does this have to be so dam- OWW!" His scream was drawn from him by a blur of red flying into his forehead. "Stop it with the damn stinging hexes," he growled at Gellert. The man had entered the room at the same moment that he had started to curse and had hit him with the minor hex as a result.

"And have I not told you to cease in your use of profanity?" The man took a seat in a cozy looking arm-chair across from the muttering boy. They were in the library of Gellert's London home where they had taken up residents since arriving in Britain. "Now what is it that has you using such unbecoming language?"

Muttering some of the 'unbecoming language' toward the elderly man, Harry snapped the heavy book in his hands shut before laying it to the side. "Demons! How is it that there are such complicated creatures in this world?"

"Ah," the man said knowingly, nodding his head. "Let me guess, you're dealing with either how their powers form, or with how you tell if one is either a demon or a half demon?"

"Both actually," Harry replied sounding surprised as he looked to his teacher expectantly.

"First off, lets cover whether or not a being is a full or half demon, as this subject is a great deal less complicated than the former." The man's voice had shifted into what Harry liked to call his 'lecture voice'. "To be a full blooded demon, you must either have two parents of the demon species, or a single demonic parent who has lain with a human."

"But see that's my point," Harry exclaimed tiredly. "How in the world is someone with a mum for demon and a human for a pa a full blooded demon?"

"The demonic nature, for a lack of a better word, infects the child while in the womb." Gellert could see that his student had gained a clear grasp of what he was trying to get across, so continued on. "If a demon were to have a child with another species, such as a centaur, then it would gain traits of both parents. More than likely it would have its half human half horse form, and whatever power it was the demon parent had."

"So the child could end up with a centaur form and the ability to control an element?"

"Yes, or they could gain a full animal form, if their demonic parent is some form of animal demon. There's also the chance they could gain another half human half animal form or something as simple as a boost to one of their physical traits." Harry made to ask what he meant, but Gellert had already started to answer. "An example of what I'm talking about is what the muggles call the _Egyptian gods_. Ra was a full blooded demon whose mother was of the falcon verity and his father a fire demon. Bastet was a cat demon and Horus a hawk." Harry nodded; he had expected such a thing and had been wondering if most _gods_ were exactly that, or if they were just witches and wizards who had succeeded in hoodwinking muggles.

"My best advice to you," Gellert said sitting forward to better look the young boy in the eye, "is not to be disrespectful to others, especially when it concerns what their species is. Not that I see you as the type to judge others by something as simple as race."

"But what about me and my parents?" Harry asked. "I've read that the Potters have almost all been full blooded demons. And that unlike a normal full blooded demon who gains the same abilities as their parents, with one of the two natures coming out as the dominate ability in the child while the other is barley an ability at all, that the Potters' powers formed in a different way that made them unique to other demons. Will the same thing that makes the Potters unique affect me in any way?"

"I don't know." Harry could feel the brutal honesty in the man's voice and knew he had answered that way not to scare him, but as a way not to disrespect him by lying. "I won't lie to you; you're in a very dangerous situation. Both of your parents have drastically clashing natures that could result in anything happening when you awaken."

"Sometimes when such a union takes place, like has happened with your parents, the results can be amazing or devastating. Take for instance one of the few times in all of history that a demon has had a child with a seraph, one of the fallen races. Though it has only happened three times in recorded history, two of the children died seconds after birth and that was with their powers sealed."

"And the one child that made it?" Harry questioned in an attempt to forget his rising fear at what may happen to him in a little over months' time, though at least he had been fortunate enough to have made it eleven years. That had to count for something or at least that's what he was hoping anyway.

"She became one of the strongest sorceresses to walk this plane. Morgan le Fey, a woman whose legendary feats of magic have carved out her place in history." In the man's voice Harry could hear what sounded like hints of respect for the woman slipping through.

"Was she as evil as she's portrayed in literature and movies today?"

"No she wasn't," Gellert answered. "It's common knowledge in the magical world that she wasn't evil or seductresses."

Harry nodded. "And what of Merlin? Was he as good a man as the muggles like to make him out to be?"

"No," the light smile he wore made its way into his voice. "Merlin is nothing more than a fictional character that muggles love to use. His character has about as much place in the magical world as the word 'abracadabra' does." Rising to his feet he waved his wand sending Harry's book into the boy's hands. "Don't worry about not understanding that book. It and many like it are written by decrepit persons that enjoy throwing around heavy words to make themselves look and feel better."

"Attempting to show their smarts, whereas truly educated people let their wisdom shine through the people and the lives they touch." Harry had gained a knowing smile as he spoke. Having traveled with Gellert all his life he had come across more than a few people who fit his teacher's description of the book's author.

Gellert stared at the young boy for a second before nodding. "That was very well said Harry." Said boy didn't show his elation, but knew he had impressed the man when he had used his name. "Get showered and ready, we will soon be leaving."

Harry felt his happiness slip away at the unexpected bit of news. "Do we have to travel like we did last time?" He asked with a grimace, referring to the wizard method of traveling called apparition.

The first time he had experienced such travel was when they had made the short, but hellish trip to Britain. Gellert gave no warning as to what he would be facing resulting in Harry learning the hard way that first time users of this method of travel more times than not ended up losing everything in their stomach. Since that time, Harry had been hesitant about going anywhere, even going as far as to turn down going and meeting whoever it was that Gellert went off to see every day since arriving in Great Britain.

Harry felt like smacking the man when a light appeared in the man's eyes. He didn't know why but he could feel the smugness coming off his teacher in waves.

"No, we'll be using the floo." Before Harry could question Gellert was striding for the exit. "We'll be going to pick up your school things. While we're out we can get you the same books they have for first generation magic users, and if we have the time get you a new weapon."

"Why? I like my knives!" He said defensively as he placed a protective hand over each of his hips where he kept his twin blades holstered.

"As you displayed when facing my harmless patronus, you have a tendency to throw away your beloved blades. If you were to do so in the middle of a battle where your life is on the line, you could be throwing your life away with them."

Grudgingly, he admitted the man was right. "But will it really matter now that I'll be learning how to use magic? I mean, I've seen you conjure chairs and other things, is it not possible to summon weapons as well?"

"Yes it is, but you will be unable to do so for some time. And just because you can use magic doesn't mean you're invincible. There are numerous amounts species in this world that have powers that are devastating. There are even two very powerful families here in Britain, one that has the ability to cancel out magic, while the other can do the same to the powers of non-humans. And I can assure you, both families were not on our side during the war."

"In our world you have to know more than just how to put up a magical shield. You must know how to fight and defend yourself with and without a wand. Otherwise you could lose your life, or worse lose someone else's for them."

"I'm sorry I questioned you," Harry muttered thoroughly abashed.

Gellert released a deep sigh. The boy was frustratingly complex for a male his age. At times he acted as badly as any average boy of eleven would, but at other times he showed just how mature and intelligent he was capable of being. It gave him whiplash trying to keep up with which version he was dealing with at times, but he supposed it was better than having to deal with a child like the Nott heir. And though he would never admit it to anyone outside of Dumbledore, the boy had wormed his way into his heart over the years and become something akin to a grandson to him.

"It's perfectly fine and completely understandable." Gellert told him keeping his exasperation hidden to spare the child's feelings. "Those who continuously ask questions are those who can later go on to give answers." Harry smiled up at the man who towered over him and earned a small twitch of the lips back. "Now hurry and get a bath. The sooner we get you something to channel your magic through, the sooner I can begin teaching you in fields outside of how to lose to an old man."

Harry's smile was replaced by a look of annoyance. "You're a fossilized as- OWW!"

HSFMB

As the world stopped spinning around him, Harry stumbled out of a fireplace full of emerald green flames and into a crowded, dusty pub. From what Gellert had told him the place was called The Leaky Cauldron and was one of Britain's better known establishments. This surprised Harry as the place looked a bit run down at first glance, with its dirty floors and cobwebs in the corners of the ceilings. But as he stood by the fireplace waiting for his companion to show up he started to see all the reasons why the place was so popular.

While the pub was in dire need of a strong cleaning, you couldn't help but enjoy the vibes the bar and its patrons gave off. Everything about the place was inviting, from the smell of warm mouthwatering food, to the sound of everyone's conversations overlapping one another as a soft tune played in the background. Harry knew at once that if he ever got the chance then he would definitely be coming back here, if for nothing more than to sit back and read a book as he tried out whatever it was that filled the pub with the smell of a home cooked meal.

"I see you're enjoying yourself." Harry jumped at the sudden appearance of Gellert. He had been so lost in people watching that he had forgotten about waiting for the man to arrive. "Were you looking for obvious sighs of who might be what?"

Harry shook his head, but glanced out at the gathering of people anyway. It seemed he had forgotten about the other reason why he had been so excited to come to the magical community. He had yet to see what a demon, spirit, and many of the other species of magical creature looked like. He didn't count the pictures in the books he had stolen from Gellert's personal library as seeing them, for even with the picture's ability to move they left so much more to be wanted.

"Well I hate to disappoint you, but natural forms like you're looking for are banned in here." The man had taken to looking across the pub just as his charge had. They had been here in Britain for over a week now, and he hadn't found the time to come visit the small pub until now.

"That seems a bit... profiley." Harry commented testing the made up word out. He may have had a strong dislike for those of the Stalkers and Death Eaters, but other than those who wanted to hurt and hunt people for what they were, he had no problem with any other group, whether they were muggles, magic users, demons, or anything else that was out there that he had yet to learn of.

"It's nothing like that," Gellert reassured. "The rule is in place to keep it from becoming too crowded in here. Could you imagine what it would be like if ogres, trolls, centaurs, and other large breeds of creatures were to come together here in this already crowded pub?"

Suddenly from across the room a yell of "Lord Grindelwald," reached Harry and Gellert. The boy only had long enough to send the man a look that said 'Lord, really?' before they were swarmed by people. Many of them reaching out to shake the man's hand as they fired what felt like a million questions their way.

"Where have you been all these years my lord?"

"How have you been?"

"Do you intend to come back to Britain for good?"

Harry didn't envy the man, though his popularity did raise the question of who Gellert was to all these people. The way they acted toward him it was as if he was famous. He was drawn from his musing by the sound of the most ridiculous question he had ever heard.

"And who is this Lord Grindelwald, a love child perhaps?" A large man chortled, his double chin glistening with sweat as he turned the tide of attention onto Harry. "What would Albus say?"

"No, this is not my 'love child'." Harry could detect the smallest traces of disgust and an abundance of annoyance in his teacher's voice as he spoke to the whale like man. "He is my charge, Harry Potter."

At once the talking in the pub slowed to a stop. Every person Harry could see from inside the circle of people who had surrounded him and Gellert were so focused on him that he felt his hands twitching for his blades. He had come to accept that he would be famous in the magical world and felt that it might not be so bad, but the way everyone was staring at him was unnerving.

It happened just as fast as it stopped. The sound of chairs scraping and the slam of feet on the wooden floor filled the room at the same time the circle of bodies around him started to press in on him. Having already been on edge Harry was ready to move, his slender frame helping him to easily slide through the mass of bodies pushing toward where he had been instead of where he was now.

Stumbling out of the group of people, Harry silently thanked Gellert for all the training he had given that made him nimble enough to get out of the still growing crowd of people without being seen. Thankful as he was, he still planned to get the elderly man back for causing the scene he had. Gellert would have known the type of reaction his name would earn, and Harry was willing to bet that the man had done all that just to teach him a lesson.

Grumbling about an old man breaking a hip, Harry looked around the pub and was happy to see more than a few of the families and groups of people had stayed where they were. Some of them looked confused by the majority of the pub's reaction, while others shook their heads and looked on with disgust.

He was about to go find a place to wait out the storm when from inside the group he had just escaped he heard the fat man that Gellert had held a disliking for, scream over the rest of the crowds bickering. "He's gone! Where did he go?"

He allowed a small groan to escape him as he turned to run out the nearest exit. It was as he was headed for the door that a hand with a steel grip grabbed him firmly by the shoulder and jerked him carefully into a booth. The sound of the group breaking up to look for him floated into the booth at the same time Harry stared at the man who had grabbed him and the two females that accompanied him.

The male of the group was tall and broad shouldered with a strong square jaw; his dark brown hair was just long enough to show how curly it was. Bellow his dark brown eyes, was a long painful looking scar that divided his face in half. Besides the large scar on his face that drew the eye, he had many more to match it. Multiple healed over cuts and lacerations were visible on his neck and arms, all of which looked to be only a fraction of those that disappeared into his collar and rolled up sleeves of his flannel shirt.

The woman that Harry assumed was the man's wife had more than her fair share of scars across what he could see of her arms and neck, with only one scar marring her face that was located on her lips, but even then there was no denying the beauty she held. Her light brown hair was pulled back showing off her pretty features to the world. Her eyes were a warmer shade of brown than her husband's and her build was more streamlined and made for speed than the man who had grabbed Harry.

Just as he was about to look over the youngest of their group the thought that these people were fighters entered his mind and never left. After years of surprise attacks from Gellert, Harry had learned to be prepared for anything, and while it was unlikely that they were going to attempt anything, he knew they'd be a real challenge to get away from.

When Harry finally laid eyes on the third and final member of their group, instantly his thoughts went to how cute she was. Her eyes were a deep chocolate brown, and her long wavy hair was just a few shades lighter than they. Like both of her parents she had an athletic build, however, unlike them she lacked any type of scars that would have marred her lightly tanned skin.

He sent them a small smile as the thought of how a portrait of the girl could be drawn in only a few differing shades of brown crossed his mind. "It's not that I'm not thankful for the save, but you don't make a habit of snatching up children as they run by, do you? Because that would make this situation very awkward." The girl went wide eyed as her parents smiled lightly knowing that he had been joking.

"Sorry to disappoint, but we weren't looking to spirit away any children today," the man joked as he reached for something in the seat beside him that Harry couldn't see. Tensing with his hand on his hip, Harry was ready to move when the man pulled out a baseball cap that he placed on Harry's head, defusing his rigid stature and then seconds later the fat man that Harry now held a great dislike for waddled past.

"My bad jokes aside, thank you for the help." The man and woman nodded, telling him that it was no problem. The girl however, had taken to watching him with a cautious look in her eyes, paying special attention to his eyes. Like that since they were abnormal that he needed to be watched. "My name is-"

"Harry Potter," the woman supplied, earning a raised eyebrow from him. "Yes we heard. This is my husband Dan, my daughter Hermione, and I'm Emma Granger. It's nice to meet you Harry."

"Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, am I correct?" He turned his full attention onto the girl. It was obvious to him that she wasn't used to people her own age from the way she squirmed slightly under his gaze.

Hermione sent a small nod to the strange eyed boy, telling him he had been right in guessing where her name had come from. She honestly hadn't expected anyone her age to have read that piece of literature yet. It had always been adults that had guessed her name's origin. The way her father had surprised them by pulling him into the booth aside, it was actually a pleasant having someone around that might be like her... and it didn't hurt that he was really cute either.

"It's a very pretty name," he commented before turning his attention back to the group at large. "It's nice to meet you all, and once again I'd like to thank you for getting me away from that. It appears I'm not quite ready to deal with that sort of situation just yet."

"Is there a reason why those adults were acting like you were the second coming?" Hermione asked pointing to where he had been surrounded at.

"A very stupid one, but yes, there is a reason behind that." Harry was pleased when none of them asked anymore questions about why he had been fawned over. "So are you here for your school shopping, or did I happen to come across a family outing?"

"Both actually," Dan answered as he took a drink of his water. "What about you? I'd say that you were raised in this world by how those people reacted, but from the way you looked this room over when first arriving tells me this was your first time seeing this place."

Harry looked the man and his wife both in the eye as he realized they were exhibiting the same signs of awareness as Gellert so often did. "Observant aren't you?" Dan looked taken aback by the statement but didn't deny his claim. Emma smiled at him, noting how mature and observant he was as well. "You're right, my parents were both a part of this world, but I was raised without knowledge of all this," he said gesturing to the room around them.

It was as he finished speaking that a loud shrill whistle pierced the air that even if he were to try he'd never be able to forget. Peering out of the booth he saw Gellert standing by a door toward the back of the pub, his foot tapping lightly in a sign that told Harry to get a move on or he'd be dealing with a pissed off old man later on. Quickly turning back to the family of three, he removed the man's cap giving it back as he rose to leave.

"It was nice meeting you all," he said, walking backwards so he could continue to face them as he departed. "I hope to see you at school, or on the train Hermione." Whipping around he raced off to Gellert who was still by the same door as before, looking as bored as ever though Harry was happy to note his tapping had come to a stop.

"What took you so long?" The elderly man asked. He gave Harry a look that said the entire situation was his fault because he couldn't stand still and take the crowds fawning.

"Why would you do that?" He shot back ignoring the man's question. As he spoke Harry continued to glance around the room waiting for someone to spot him and start a second riot. It was as he took in the room as a whole that he got the feeling that the only person that could see him was Hermione, whom was still staring after him even now. "And why did all those people react to you that way? Are you famous in the magic world, and who is this Albus person, that sweaty was talking about?" The only sign Harry had that the man was listening to him as he turned and led him for the back door, was his face slipping from a bored look to one that was completely devoid of any emotion at all.

"Showing you how much sway you hold over certain individuals, because the majority of them are apple-polishers, something like that, and someone you will meet soon enough," Gellert said answering all of his charges questions in one go. Harry knew something or someone had managed to annoy his mentor by the way he was acting.

Any further thought of why Gellert was behaving in such a manner was whipped from Harry's mind as the man pushed the door he had been standing by open revealing what was on the other side.

The sight before him was enough to leave him both speechless and slack jawed, his reaction earning a small grin form the elderly man who shoved him over the threshold of the pub and into the most amazing alley he had ever had the pleasure of witnessing.

On both sides of the street were shops and buildings packed in next to each other as tightly as they could be, all of them with fascinatingly bizarre designs and displays. Even the cauldron shop drew the eyes with its many different cauldron types floating around outside the front of the shop. A gold cauldron the size of a football that had black smoke rising out of it, a huge copper one that was emitting animal sounds, and a bunch of small hand sized silver ones that had a strange green substance bubbling over their brims, leaving flowers on the cobbled walkways were ever their contents landed.

However, even with all the amazing sights that the alley held the best by far had to be the people - creatures - beings, whatever you wanted to call them, Harry didn't care, he only wanted to see more. It was in that moment he realized to be a part of the world before him made him one of the luckiest people ever.

Amongst all the people Harry saw, was a pink skinned man that towered over many in the crowd, his long bulky teeth hooking up and out of his mouth. A group of children riding broomsticks, carpets, and what looked like floating snowboards and skateboards as they waved throughout the crowds at break neck speeds. A woman being engulfed in flames before shooting off into the sky. A group of green wearing leprechauns laughing at a small creature that had long ears that were only a few inches shorter than his nose. The creature chased a piece of gold that would jump away from him every time he drew near it, his clawed hands opening and closing greedily, unaware of the green clad creatures floating above him.

Harry's smile looked to be permanently etched on to his face. Every person and everything around him was so amazing. He could see so many creatures that he knew what were, and just as many that he didn't. There were centaurs, satyrs, people with animal body parts, those who had plants growing out of their hair and bodies, and people who he guessed were demons by their varying shapes of horns coming from their heads. Even the normal looking individuals held an air about them that he found to be utterly captivating.

But just as amazing as the shops and the people were the clothing they all wore. There were men and women wearing ruffled shirts and dresses that looked to be plucked straight from the Victorian era, talking with individuals dressed in vines and plants. Hooded figures stood shoulder to shoulder with those in clothing you would see on teens in the muggle world that stood next to men and women in plated armor. Many different types of body paint and tailored suits, loincloths, and odd body suits made entirely of leather, and even people whose clothes barely covered anything at all.

"Please tell me that guy was wearing some type of dragon scales, wyvern hide, anything that involves a large ass lizard that I can wear on my person!" Gellert looked to the teen boy with an annoyed frown before raising his wand and hitting him with a stinging hex. "Damn, that hurts," Harry hissed rubbing the back of his now swollen hand. "I'm sorry, alright! I'm just really excited. No need to get all," Harry waved his hands as he looked for a word to use, "stingy!"

"Yes there are many different types of hide that you can wear." As he spoke he had started to walk into the crowded streets with Harry following close behind. "Once we get you access to the Potter and Bones fortunes, you can go buy what you want. I know you; you're like a fairy when it comes to something you want, and though I find it doubtful that you could ever put a dent in either of your family vaults in your lifetime, I would advise you not to spend as much as you can on anything you want."

"Uh mate," Harry called as he jogged up next to the man. "Did you just call me gay?" He didn't sound insulted like most boys around his age and much older would, only shocked that the man before him whom had always shown respect for all people would say such a thing.

"No, I was talking of actual fairies, the children and descendants of the Queen of Fae." He would have continued to talk but at that moment a hulking figure that had failed to pay attention to what it was doing almost succeeded in knocking over the boy he had been charged with caring for. His wand was out faster than Harry or any of the surrounding people could see. Shooting off a red spell, it stopped the giant man's moment before Harry could be hurt.

"Like I was saying before that person was so carless, fairies are very powerful, mischievous, malice filled creatures, which suffer from an almost crippling love of anything shiny, or what they might deem pretty." Though he was still listening to Gellert, Harry had yet to take his eyes off the man who had almost crushed him. The creature looked human in all aspects except for his size. He towered over Gellert, a man whose height was an impressive 6'5. "As a result they're halfblooded children are very powerful as they don't suffer as their parents do, though they do have the possibility of suffering from their own set of drawbacks."

With the crowds hustle and bustle Harry was forced to pay attention to where he was going, as he did so he glanced up at Gellert. "What kind of drawbacks are you speaking of?"

"Instead of focusing on many different things they find 'pretty' they have a very miniscule chance, but a chance nonetheless, of ending up becoming obsessed with one thing for the rest of their lives." Harry didn't see a problem with that until Gellert elaborated. "Could you imagine being drawn to a goblet or spoon for the rest of your life? Now the chances of them becoming focused on something as meaningless as an eating utensil are astronomical, but I think you catch my drift."

"By obsessed you mean like stuck in a corner, can't move, can't eat, can't do anything if it means moving away from the act of staring at the object of their desire?" Harry questioned, suddenly he found himself preferring his situation. At least if his awakening messed up he'd end up dead and not stuck drooling over an expanse of _pretty_ wall for the rest of his life.

"No, they're able to go on with their lives, but the object or person must be a part of it." Reaching out he grasped Harry by the elbow, drawing a questioning glance from the raven-haired boy. "We're at our destination, let's go!"

They had arrived at a large snow colored building that towered over all of the other nearby buildings. On one of the few pillars by its front doors was a plaque that declared the place they were headed into as Gringotts, The Wizarding bank. Out by the double front doors stood two armored creatures holding spears threateningly, glaring at any that passed anywhere close to the building. They looked to be the same species as the long eared creature that Harry had witnessed chasing the gold piece as the leprechauns had looked on from above.

For a second Harry had thought the two short creatures were going to attack them, their small coal colored eyes glaring at them as they approached, but as they passed through the threshold of the building nothing happened.

Glancing back at the spear holding creatures Harry asked. "I don't mean to be rude, but what were they?" Before Gellert could answer his question what sounded like thunder crashing against the walls of the building exploded around them.

" !" Bellowed a deep, rumbling voice. Harry swore the thundering call had shaken the very foundation of the bank.

"Hello Hagrid," Gellert greeted turning to a man that was as big as the one who had almost crushed Harry. He had a long, wild mane of hair that you couldn't tell where it ended and his beard began. His eyes were tiny and as black as that of the much small creatures outside, but where theirs had been hard, this man's were watery and kind. "It's been far too long my friend, how have you been?" The abnormally tall man came to a thundering stop holding his hand out for Gellert to shake.

"I've been fine I reckon. Just got my Breeders Licenses, for if I ever want to head up to the dragon reserve in Wales," Hagrid informed the two of them with a wide beaming smile, not noticing Harry until he had started to speak once again. "But what about you sir, where have you been all this time... And who's your young friend here?"

"Ah, um - yes my name's Harry." He didn't want to reveal his last name fearing that the man would react as those in the bar had. If a man his size were to get too excited, Harry didn't imagine he'd live to tell the tale. "And you would be?"

"Professor Rubeus Hagrid," he announced. "I teach Care of Magical Creatures and on occasion Combat class." Harry's smiled at the enthusiasm in his voice even though the thought of the man before him teaching him any type of combat made his bladder feel weak.

"I can't wait to sit one of your classes."

Hagrid sent him an apologetic smile before replying. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait a few years for that. Cares of Magical Creatures and Combat, along with more than a few other classes are reserved for third years and above. I suspect you'll be like many of the other boys your age and will have to make due with challenging each other to combat in the duel pits for the next few years."

"It's been great seeing you Hagrid, but if I recall correctly don't you have something you should be getting to Albus?"

"Galloping gargoyles," Hagrid exclaimed. Digging into his coat pocket he pulled out a small, even by human hands, pocket watch. "I'll be late if I don't get going now. It was nice seeing you again Mr. Grindelwald, and it was nice meeting you Harry." Harry and Gellert both watched as his hulking figure ran with a speed that should have been impossible for someone his size. Just as he reached the bottom of the steps that led up to the bank, he turned and disappeared on the spot.

Harry grimaced slightly as he wondered if your size effected the sensation you experienced when apparating. Shaking himself free of such thoughts he found that Gellert had started for one of the tellers. "What species was your friend Hagrid?" He asked as he walked to his teacher's side.

"Half-giant."

"Will there be any full blooded giants at Hogwarts?"

"No, they have been deemed as not being responsible enough to handle the use of magic safely." Gellert glanced questioningly down at his young companion to see that he had gained a pensive look.

"How does that work?" Gellert said nothing settling with continuing to give him the same questioning look as before. "What I mean is that a giant would be... well a giant! How does a man get a... I guess giantess... with child?" By the time he had finished speaking Harry had turned a deep shade of red.

"And pray tell why it is that the giant parent is female?" Though he disguised it well, Gellert was having a hard time keeping a straight face at the look of discomfort the boy was wearing.

"Oh come on man," Harry snapped. The red in his face now stemming from both his embarrassment and his anger at having the man play with him. "I have a hard time seeing it working with a human male and a giantess. If it were to be the other way around I..." Harry had taken to shaking his head with a disturbed look in his young eyes. "You know what... never mind. I really don't want to know the details to that, and I'm guessing many other things I'll be seeing in this world."

Gellert let his amusement show, not that the now queasy looking boy noticed. Reaching one of the high seated teller goblins, the creature was counting a stack of gold pieces that were the same as the ones Harry had seen earlier. Together both Harry and Gellert waited patiently for the goblin to acknowledge their presence.

Gellert had taught Harry early on in life that to act impatiently was not only childish, but a good way to offend those around you ,and when you spent most of your life experiencing different cultures from around the world, you quickly learned that to offend someone was a good way to get yourself into a world of hurt.

After a time that would have made most scream in rage, the small creature turned its emotionless eyes onto the duo. "Welcome to Gringotts bank for Magical Beings. How can I be of service to you on this fine day?" The goblin said in a voice that was a mix of a growl and what Harry assumed was mono-tone for the creature, though he couldn't be hundred percent sure on that.

"We're here to gain Harry Potter access to both the Potter and Bones vaults." He pulled two different keys out that Harry could spot no difference between and handed them to the long fingered creature.

The small creature ran its long spider leg-like fingers over every inch of the iron keys. Finding nothing wrong with either of the offered keys, he turned his barely restrained glare on Harry. "I'll need some of your blood to verify if you're the heir to the Potter and Bones fortunes," the goblin growled pulling out a small black bladed dagger.

As Harry laid eyes on the blade meant to be used to take a sample of his blood, he felt a tickling sensation travel down his spine just seconds before it started to spread to every corner of his body. Slowly the area filled with the same sensation as that Harry was experiencing, making the room feel as if it had become super charged with electricity. It was deadly feeling, like he needed to move and run to burn off all the extra adrenaline now coursing through his veins, but at the same time he felt that if he were to move he would draw the wrath of whatever it was that was giving off such a powerful sensation.

Unknown to Harry and the rest of those in the bank lobby, the feeling they were being drowned in was Gellert's magic flaring to life as he stared down the now trembling goblin. "You wouldn't be suggesting he give over his blood to someone he doesn't know, would you?" Gellert asked in voice as sharp as broken glass. "You and I both know how dangerous ones blood can be if used against them. And yet you sit there and ask to take his blood like it's no problem, and with a dagger we know nothing of, no less. You're lucky I let you keep your head!"

It only took Harry seconds after Gellert had started chewing out the teller for him to come to the realization that it was he who was causing the all-consuming feeling to wash throughout the room. Harry grabbed a hand full of the man's suit, jerking it hard enough that the man was forced to turn from the teller.

"Calm down," Harry managed to pant out, sending the man responsible for his suffering a disapproving look. "You're going to give someone a heart attack." Before he had finished speaking the feeling had started to subside, dying out completely a second after he had finished his words.

Around the room startled and upset people broke out into conversation as they tried to figure out what had happened, only Harry, Gellert, and the still upset looking goblin knew who had been behind what had taken place. Clearing his throat Gellert gave the small humanoid creature an intense look that let it know it wasn't off the hook just because he had let up off his magic.

"Give me the keys, I know how to verify his identity," Gellert ordered. The goblin followed his instruction immediately, handing over both keys and the dagger.

"His blood must be taken by the dagger," the goblin muttered lowly in an attempt to not draw attention on its self or the situation it was in, and looking as if he hated himself for doing so. "When it cuts him it will destroy any and all spells on him and potions in his system aimed at changing his appearance, with the exception being the seal to hold back his base appearance and powers."

It appeared Gellert wasn't taking him for his word, the being had yet to stop speaking before he started running his wand over every inch of the knife and didn't stop until his wand had touched the entire blade twice. Giving the smallest of nods, he held his hand out to Harry. Knowing what the older man wanted he placed his hand in the man's, palm up and waited for the sting that he knew was coming.

Gellert had his palm bleeding in seconds and had the keys in the resulting blood soon after. Harry had expected something interesting to result from the keys contact with his blood, but was left disappointed when the other two nodded at the same time. Taking the key from the boy's bloody hand, Gellert used his wand to clean all traces of his charges blood from not only the blade but the keys as well before handing all three back to the goblin.

"Excellent," the goblin said as some of its uncaring attitude made its way back to its voice. Bending down it reached behind the counter it was standing behind at the same time Gellert healed the wound on Harry's hand. When it resurfaced it held a palm sized metal trunk and a red velvet drawstring bag that he placed before him. "We've been expecting you Mr. Potter." Harry was taken aback and didn't seem to be the only one. Gellert who had been about to put his wand away, chose to keep it out on the chance that he would become in need of it once again.

"In the event of their untimely death, your parents procured for you two items to be gifted to you in the summer before your first year Hogwarts." The goblin pushed both items toward him, motioning him to take them both. "One was a pouch to be connected to your vaults. No one else will be able to access this pouch besides you, Mr. Potter, but nevertheless I would keep its existence a secret. Secondly, they arranged for this trunk to be made for you and you alone, with the massage, 'Do not open it until Samhain night'."

As Harry slid the pouch and trunk into his pocket he failed to witness the look Gellert sent the silver trunk. He knew the chest to be goblin made and as a result incredibly expensive, that however wasn't what drew his attention to the finely made trunk.

What were the chances of Susan and James arranging for a trunk to be created for their son, with the instructions for it to be open on a prearranged date? A date that just so happened to coincide with the anniversary of their deaths.

Looking down at the boy who was visibly excited about receiving something from his parents, Gellert felt his lip tighten exposing his worry to the world. He like Albus knew of some of the magic that the Bones utilized, and while he saw no problem with it, he didn't like the idea of the boy delving into such things on his own.

HSFMB

Harry pushed open the door to the clothing shop called Madam Malkin Robes for All Occasions and entered on his own. Gellert had told him he could look around the alley and even do his own shopping if he so pleased. Harry had taken the man up on the offer as he had always liked to go exploring. Had the man came with him it would have resulted in them getting everything he needed right away, without any stops along the way.

A tiny tinkling sound announced his arrival to the three people already present in the shop, two girls and a middle aged woman. He assumed the woman was Madam Malkin, or at least he hoped the woman measuring one of the two girls' waists was her.

Said girl that was current having being fitted for her purchases was very short even though he could tell she was the same age as he was. Her skin was very pale and her hair a mix of different shades of almonds. He had seen many people that day with coal black eyes, but the small girl before him had them all beat. If possible her eyes were a deeper shade of black than even his hair.

The second girl who was standing beside the first, looking as if she might die of boredom was an enigma to the boy. Having traveled for many years Harry had learned to tell most races apart with a single glance, but the girl before him he couldn't get a read on. Her skin was mix of what you might find in Spain and Asia meaning she could be any number of nationalities. Her hair like Harry's own was a shocking black until you reached the tips where they were dyed blue, red, yellow, and white. He didn't know when he realized it but knew he found her pleasing to the eye.

"Morning lad," greeted Madam Malkin, who had glanced his way when he first arrived, before turning back to the young girl. "Come stand just here, and I'll be with you in a second." Harry smiled at the girls as he made his way to stand next to the shorter of the two where the woman had pointed him.

"Hello," the small girl greeted in a happy voice, giving him a small wave of her hand. "My name's Sue Li and this is my best friend Lily Moon." Lily scoffed lightly, rolling her eyes at her friend's display of enthusiasm before gradually a smile of her own made its way to her lips.

"Hey." Lily gave her own wave that was notably less chipper than her friends.

"James," he lied easily, nodding to both the girls. "First year at Hogwarts for the two of you as well?"

"Yup," chirped Sue Li at the same time Lily nodded.

Before anything else could be said between the three Madam Malkin spoke up. "Do you know if you'll be needing an 'awakening suit'?"

"Huh?" Harry said looking lost, drawing snickers from the two girls and a kind smile from Madam Malkin.

"It's a suit that those who have sealed powers and forms use in order to... keep their modesty when being awoken," Malkin informed him. It hadn't occurred to him until that point that some of the forms taken after the awakening could end up exposing their _bits_ to others.

"Yeah, I'm going to need one of those." He was aware of how his answer caused both girls to look him over; in what he was guessing was an attempt to figure out what he was. Both of their stares ended up focusing on his eyes in the end.

"That'll be one more then," Malkin murmured quietly.

Suddenly there was a tinkling from the front of the shop announcing the arrival of a man and a woman. The man looked to be of Japanese descent while the woman Puerto Rican. At once both his question of whom the people were and the girl's nationality was answered when she called out to them as 'mum' and 'dad'.

"There you are dear," Malkin said to Sue Li. "You're both free to go, your orders will be ready in an hour." Before Sue Li could take a step, Madam Malkin had her hands on Harry, measuring him.

"It was nice meeting you James," Sue Li said waving goodbye, with Lily doing the same as they made their way out of the shop with Lily's parents.

"By the way Madam Malkin, my grandfather told me to request that the right sleeves of all my purchases be long enough to cover my entire arm, and then some. He said you'd know what else to do to them after hearing my request." As he spoke his confusion became clear for the woman to hear.

Pausing long enough to look up at him and smile she said. "Your grandfather must know a thing or two about dueling!"

Harry went quiet, nodding that the man did in fact know how to fight, and still could despite his advance age. As he was thinking about the man his earlier interaction with him came to mind. Smiling cheekily he looked to Madam Malkin and asked. "You wouldn't happen to sell any clothing made of dragon or wyverns hide, would you?"

HSFMB

Harry walked through the crowded streets of the alley looking for anything that might catch his fancy. He had just moments before left a shop that sold all manner of items charmed to fly. There were brooms, carpets, surfboards, skateboards with and without any wheels on them, shoes, and so much more, all of which were made with the sole purpose of flying. The only thing that had kept him back from buying one of the items was that Gellert's house was located in an area were a lot of muggles resided. Knowing the chances of getting to fly outside was slim and the chance of flying inside Gellert's house being less likely than the first, he had left the shop with a heavy heart.

It was as he read over a sign for an ice cream parlor on the north side of alley, trying to decide if he wanted anything from the establishment, when a silvery voice grabbed his attention and wouldn't let go.

"Beat it Flint, no one here wants you or your smell around!" The voice was like the wind chimes on a breezy day and was honey to his ears.

Harry at once wanted to find the owner of the voice and didn't have to wait long at all. It seemed like every male in the alley sudden wanted to be anywhere other than their current location. Had Harry not been making his way to where the voice had originated, he would have laughed at the sight of all the irritated women who had their male companions run from them and the area.

With a large number of the once crowed street gone, Harry had a clear view of three kids that appeared to be around his age with the oldest looking to be no more than a year older than himself. Towering over them was a large green skinned beast that held a club that was engraved with strange markings upon its surface.

The beast that was looming over the three was easily seven-feet tall. It had a small covering of coarse black hair on its head that looked to be a size too small for its body. After all he had seen on this day the sight of such a creature wouldn't have bothered him in the slightest, but as the figure stood there before the girl, who was brandishing a wand that looked down right puny next to the now angry creature's club, he couldn't help but feel worried for the three.

"You bitch," growled the green creature that was shaking from in anger.

At once three things happened in the span of seconds. The green creature that Harry assumed was named Flint drew his now glowing club to the side preparing to swing it one-handedly into the girl and her two companions. At the same time the girl who had silvery blonde hair pointed her wand directly at the attacking creature's eyes and yelled out in Latin. A steady beam of red light poured into Flint's eyes causing him to scream as the spell temporarily blinding him. Harry who had started running when he saw the creature draw back to hit the group, grabbed the now loosely held club before spinning where he stood, using his momentum to slam the no longer glowing club into the back of its owners knees bringing him crashing to the ground.

As Flint rolled around on the ground moaning and clawing at his eyes, Harry looked over the three that he now came to realize hadn't needed his help at all. The trio looked slightly alike, not enough to be mistaken as siblings, but enough so that they could pass as cousins.

The oldest of the group and the one to cast the spell was simply put, breathtakingly beautiful. She was tall and slender and had skin that was the color of moonbeams. Her sapphire like eyes held a mixture of thankfulness, irritation, and reproach for him that had Harry baffled.

The second of the group was a boy with white-blond hair, who even Harry had to admit, was good looking. His steel-gray eyes and pointed features clashed with his gentle smile he wore.

Finally the third member of the group was if possible as good looking as the first two of the group. She was a head shorter than the unidentified boy and kept up the theme of light colored hair, hers being as pure white as a freshly fallen snow. She would have come off as being much younger than she was had it not been for her alarmingly intelligent amber eyes.

"Thank you for your help, but I could have handled it just fine on my own," sighed the oldest girl. It was brief but Harry saw a flash of something unreadable in her eyes that was gone before he could tell what it was. "You can leave now," she said dismissively as she turned her focus to the other two and asked them what they should do about the still moaning creature at their feet.

For a second Harry had felt something trickle over his senses that had made him want to run as fast as he could in the opposite direction and away from the beautiful girl, but as soon as the feeling had come it passed, leaving him feeling annoyed.

Taking the club, he swung it down on the creature's disproportionate head knocking it out and gaining the attention of the now wide eyed trio. "You're remarkably pretty, but you come off as a bit of a bitch," Harry informed the girl with silver hair. Her response was to stand where she was and gape at him.

The male of the group laughter drew a now slightly smirking Harry's attention away from the girl and on to him. "It looks like we've found someone that your aura doesn't work on, Fleur," he commented as his chuckling died down. Seeing Harry's questioning look he proceeded to explain. "Fleur's part Veela." When Harry didn't respond the boy gave him a look of understanding. "Muggle born huh? That's alright, give it some time and you'll know as much as those of us who have been raised in this world."

"Veela are somewhat like... sirens. If I recall correctly muggles have stories about them, right?" Getting a nod from Harry who wasn't about to tell the boy any different on his birth status, he continued on. "Well they're like them! Beautiful beings that have control over fire, an avian like form, and an aura that turns any male into a blundering fool, whose greatest wish in the world is to follow the veela's every command."

Recalling the strange feeling he had to find her when she had spoken and the momentary want to run away, Harry nodded in understanding. "What about you two are you Veela as well?" As soon as the question left his lips, Harry realized how offensive the inquiry could have been. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend. I'm still very new to-"

"Its fine," the boy replied, cutting him off with a wave of his hand. "If I had just learned about this world and all it had to offer, I'd be willing to bet I'd be full of questions myself, and the answer to your question is no, we're not. We're all three siblings but not by blood. Fleur has lived with my family all her life, as a result we've become immune to the aura she gives off. Though from what my mother says, my father didn't start becoming resistant to her until she was four or five. Apparently Fleur here had him running off to get whatever she wanted at the time." Harry and the boy shared a small laugh that served to finally snap Fleur from her stupor.

The girl that he had been speaking of just seconds before, reached over and smacked the boy lightly on the back of the head. Her cheeks that had been the same as the rest of her flawless skin seconds before were now a deep shade of red. "Did you really have to tell him that?" Looking to Harry she gave him an apologetic, shy smile. "I'm very sorry, I'm used to either dealing with males that either makes a fool out of themselves trying to impress me, or those who act like this awful smelling beast did."

Harry opened his mouth to reply but at that second breathed in and found out why the girl had continued to point out the creatures smell. In the rush of things he had failed to up to that point to catch a whiff of the putrid stench that clung to the beast. It was so intense that he was forced to take a step back as his eyes had started to water.

"What the hell," Harry exclaimed covering his mouth and nose with his hand. "Did he shite himself on the way down?"

"No, this is what all trolls and half-trolls smell like," the smallest of the group informed him. Harry was taken aback by the way the girl was staring so intently at his eyes with her own amber ones, it was tad bit unnerving for the boy. "This is my brother Draco," she said reaching out to touch the boy on the arm without breaking eye contact, "you already know Fleur's name, and I'm Hedwig. It's nice to meet you."

"I'm James," he lied once again. He truly didn't want to experience another outburst like he had earlier in the day, so he had taken to using his father's name anytime someone asked for his. "It's nice to meet all of you as well."

"I know I was rude before but thank you for your help with him," Fleur said pointing to Flint. "He thinks everyone smaller than him should just let themselves be walked over. The sad thing is there are many at Hogwarts that let him."

"But for every person that shows cowardice to such actions, there are just as many that show a small amount of courage that can result in the same way as things did today." Harry along with his four new acquaintances found themselves in the presence of a man and woman, both of whom possessed a strong resemblance to Draco. What most caught Harry's eye was the single short onyx horn coming out of the woman's forehead, making him wonder what sort of powers she held.

"I believe we haven't had the pleasure of meeting," said the man stepping forward and over the unconscious half-troll. His wife chose to walk around the body, as she did so Harry saw her cast a spell that had the air smelling clean once again. "Lucius Malfoy," he said extending his hand, "and this is my lovely wife Narcissa." Harry took the man's offered hand at the same time Narcissa gave him a kind, gentle smile.

"It's nice to meet you both," Harry replied as he took Narcissa hand giving it a small kiss. Gellert had drilled the importance of being respectful to your elders into him from a young age, and while that tended to go out the window when Harry dealt with the man himself, he did like to think of himself as a gentleman... most of the time anyway. "My name's James."

Harry knew he had done something wrong right away when the two elder Malfoys froze, before he knew it they were both searching his face as if looking for something, Narcissa doing so hungrily. Whatever it was the two had been looking for they found as realization dawned on their faces at the same time.

"What's wrong- Damn it! Gellert you have got to stop doing that crap! You _leannan moncai! _" He hadn't seen who the caster of the hex had been, but the fact it was the same stinging hex he was now becoming used to that he had taken to the back of the head, Harry knew right away who it was. Turning around he was proven right as the man walked past him and embraced a shocked Narcissa. It only took her a few seconds before a warm smile spread across her face and she returned the hug, before any of the pre-teens knew it the group of adults were talking and laughing like old friends.

"You know Lord Grindelwald?" Hedwig asked as she once again looked at him with those penetrating eyes of hers.

"You could say that," Harry nodded. "I've lived with him all of my life." The trio gave him impressed looks that had him once again wondering what the man was to the people of the magical world or at the very least magical Britain. "I only just recently learned about this whole world, can you three tell me what you know about him? Is he famous?" He forced himself not to growl when each of the three gave him stunned looks. He really didn't appreciate being kept in the dark about things and apparently there was a lot about his teacher he didn't know.

"He's known as one of the brightest minds in the world," Draco told him with a hint of disbelief coloring his voice. "His work in the fields of Charms, defense magic, and the dark arts are renowned worldwide."

"Also, during the last war he and his partner Albus Dumbledore, actions' are the main reasons why Great Britain is still what it is today," Fleur added in a much kinder way than her adopted brother had. She hadn't meant to treat him as she had earlier and now felt guilty for having done so.

"That explains a lot," Harry sighed. It was no wonder those people had acted the way they had. The man was a war hero, and apparently famous for his mind and work in his select fields of magic. Finding out all he had about the old man was almost as mind-blowing as when he had found out that he too was famous.

His musing on the subject of his teacher was interrupted by the sound of Narcissa asking about him.

"His name isn't really James is it?" She questioned sending Harry a hopeful look. "You look so much like them both, James and Susan, and your eyes," she paused as she knelt down to his level and started caressing his cheek in a motherly fashion. "Your eyes are just as beautiful as I remember them on the day of your birth."

Harry wasn't used to such acts of affection, especially from someone as beautiful as Narcissa. He had no chance of fighting the neon blush that made its way to his face as a result of her actions, and it was made all the worse when both she and her two daughters giggled at the redness in his cheeks.

"I'm sorry about lying, it's ju-" He was forced to stop speaking when she wrapped him in a warm hug. Over her shoulder he could see Lucius sending his wife and him a happy smile while his three children looked on in bewilderment.

"If I had it my way, I would have raised you as my own," Narcissa whispered. Harry's embarrassment turned to discomfort when he felt a slight wetness on his shoulder from tears he knew she was shedding. "Alongside Draco, Fleur, and Hedwig... as a family."

"Narcissa, love," Lucius said softly as he came over to his wife, placing a loving hand on her shoulder. "I think your scaring the boy," he said with some amusement in his voice.

As he pulled the now apologizing woman back, Harry felt a sense of loss. He had been hugged before by many of the people he had met and became friends with, but never before had he been hugged in such a way that he felt it to his very core. It was a new and welcome experience for him.

"Its fine," he said truthfully, beaming up at the now composed woman who returned the action with a smile of her own.

"Uh, what's going on?" Draco asked, voicing the question that was plaguing Fleur's mind as well.

"Like he said," Hedwig said staring Harry in the eye. "His name isn't James, its Harry, Harry Potter."

Harry didn't pay attention to her siblings reaction for he was to focused on the girl herself to notice or care what else was happening at the moment. "How did you know?"

"I came to live with my family at the age of five. When I first arrived Narcissa showed all of the photo albums she had, letting me know that soon it would start to be filled with pictures of me as well." As Hedwig spoke the others, excluding Harry who was focused solely on her, looked to Narcissa who was nodding as she recalled the day her daughter spoke of. "As we we're looking through one of the albums, I saw a picture of a family of three. I remember it so well because the baby was so cute with his tuff of jet black hair and two beautiful eyes, I asked about you and she told me all about you, and how your mother and she were close friends and that the same could be said for your father and mine."

"You're lying to them is the cause behind why I hit you with that stinging hex." Gellert added to fill the silence that settled over the group after Hedwig had stopped speaking. "Never be ashamed of who you are."

"I wasn't ashamed," Harry shot back, annoyed. "I didn't know them and the last time someone learned my name I ended up being chased by a fat sweaty old guy who had more chins that all of us combined." The girls grimaced at the picture he had painted, but if Harry wasn't mistaken he heard Draco fight back a snort of amusement.

"Be that as it may, I taught you better than that. Such actions are beneath you" Gellert meet his gaze head own and Harry knew he had lost, causing him to nod that the man was right. "Now then, how much of your shopping have you got done?"

Harry chuckled lightly as he stepped toward Narcissa, who he was thankfully of when she took his hand in her own. "I was fitted for robes," he told the now annoyed Gellert.

"Anything else?"

"I was actually headed to get my wand when I ran into Fleur, Hedwig, and Draco."

Before Gellert could comment on Harry's lack of focus on getting his shopping done, Draco spoke up. "How do you know you'll be getting a wand?"

"I thought we had to have one to cast magic?" Harry replied looking to Gellert for answers. "Is it not guaranteed we'll get one?"

"I apologize for my slip in not informing you sooner about this," Gellert said earning the attention of the group. "Wands are one of many the many types of foci that you're magic can choose. There are staves, scepters, canes, weapons, jewelry, and numerous other items that can channel magic."

"I myself use a cane," supplied Lucius. Raising his waist high cane the man waved the tip that held an unusual formation of metal, over the downed half-troll. Before their eyes Flint's green body suddenly started to glow a dark blue that made the boy's body start spasming until slowly it had shrunk down to that of a normal looking sixteen year old.

"I have an idea," Narcissa said more to Harry than anyone else. "We've yet to get either Draco or Hedwig's focus yet, why don't we all go together? It'll be fun and will give us a chance to get to know each other better."

The group having all agreed to continue their shopping together, headed down the alley way with Lucius and Gellert, lagging a ways behind the rest.

"That poor child," Lucius said as he watched his wife talk the ear off the young boy, whose hand she was still holding. "He has no idea that he's now one of hers."

Gellert allowed a small laugh to escape as he too watched the woman interact with his grandson. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

* * *

**AN: Yes, Hedwig is Hedwig. I had planned on making her one of the options for the harem, but I'll need to know if those of you reading this will be okay with that? Why Fleur is with the malfoys will be shown or told later on. While I'm on the Malfoys, they will be a light family in this story and that's not the only changes I've made that I'll show in the future. As for Hagrid, I have it that since he was able to be open about his status as a creature there would be those who would look further into his case and at least give him a form of veritaserum made for magical beings, to clear his name. If you want to be a naysayer, think about it like this, since creatures have more rights in this world then it's only natural that they would have more advances for their problems, like maybe a cure or a way to control being a werewolf and the like.**

**I'm not sure if next chapter will be as long as this one... I don't even know what house Harry will be in (Snakes, or Lions), or what type of foci he'll be getting yet. Next chapter will be the train ride and the Awakening/Sorting. Also I'll be moving soon and since I'm poor I have no idea when I'll be getting internet back, but on the bright side I hope to get another chapter out before that happens and for those of you wondering the next chapter of S2ndC will be up soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Here's the next chapter and I still have no idea when I'll be moving... I've restarted the poll, so if you voted and hedwig wasn't one of the options then you'll want to go recast your vote. BTW the Lily last chapter was Lily Moon, not Evans. Thanks to ****lilyevans12681998 for the help with this chapter, she is the best EVER!**

Harry laid on his back atop his bed, his hand stretched out and grasping for the ceiling as he gazed up at the long and thin, yet incredibly sturdy chain that was entwined between his fingers that led down to his wrist where it spiraled around his forearm until it reached his elbow. The old man named Ollivander had said that the silver chain that had flashes of blue and black in it was one of the only metals in the world that had the ability to channel magic, and that it was a product of a joint effort on the part of the goblins and dwarves.

Harry had felt a deep connection to his foci from the first time he had laid eyes on it as it sat in the back of Ollivander's shop gathering dust. And yet, whenever he casted spells with the piece of expertly made silverwork, he couldn't escape the feeling that he wasn't getting quite enough 'umph' into the energy powering the spell. It was like he had so much more magic to give each incantation, but that he was somehow being limited from giving more.

When he had told Gellert as much, the man had told him that it was nonsense and that all of his spells so far had been if anything too powerful that for him to be able to cast with the seal on was something he had never seen before and that he needed to learn more control so as to not waste valuable magic. However, Harry couldn't escape the feeling that the man was hiding something about the occurrence. Maybe it was an effect of his clashing natures that he couldn't push through more magic, or perhaps it was something more simple, like the seal that had been placed on him to hide away his powers was somehow effecting his control and spell casting.

Harry's musing over the subject came to an end when a voice he had not been ready for reached his ears.

"The more I observe you, the more plausible I find it that you have fairy blood in your veins." Harry chuckled at the unexpected intrusion. Like was normal for the man, Gellert had been able to sneak up on Harry without giving away his presence. This time he had managed to get past the boy's shut and locked bedroom door without having to open it to gain entry. "Lying in bed as you look at something shiny is the type of behavior one would expect from the descendants of the Queen of Fae."

Harry smiled, clasping his hand he made the chain tighten around his flesh. As was usual, Gellert was right; he was fascinated by the 'something shiny'.

"You know," Harry said letting his arm go dead, dropping it to his side as he turned his head to look at the man, "popping up in my bedroom is vastly creepier now that you've come out of the closet to me." It was now Gellert's turn to let a small chuckle escape.

The day they had gone to Diagon Alley and sequently met the Malfoys (a family that he now loved), Gellert had invited a man over that if possible was as old as he was and yet possessed the same air of youth that Gellert had always exhibited. It was like they were opposite sides of the same coin, both of them able to give off a feeling of raw, undiluted power while acting as if what the weather on that day would be the most important piece of knowledge you would ever need. Though admittedly, Gellert seemed to act more seriously when tying his shoes than the colorfully dressed man with the knee length beard, could ever hope to be.

When the man arrived Harry had been excited to learn that their guest was Albus Dumbledore, the man who was mentioned as many times in the books he had bought in Diagon Alley than Gellert had been. But all his anticipation to converse with the man, and for the rest of the evening ahead died away when before his very eyes the ancient man had leaned into the equally ancient Gellert and gave him a passionate kiss. Harry's mind had literally went blank, for how long he didn't know, but when he had regained some semblance of brain function the duo of senior citizens were still going at it like two hormonal teenagers.

The resulting talk was long on Harry. It seemed that Gellert had been making due with nightly visits with his longtime lover by way of Phoenix since he had started traveling with Harry when he was four years old. This coupled with the fact that the man had been keeping other huge secrets from Harry all his life had the boy questioning if he truly knew the man at all. It was after many hours of discussion, and Gellert breaking down and giving him a drink called Fire Whiskey that he was finally able to wrap his head around this new piece of information about the man who had raised him.

He had realized that the man's sexual preference made him no different than he had been that morning. He was still the same person who had taken care of Harry for as long as he could remember and the man who had taught him a great many a thing. If Harry were to be honest with himself, it actually made a lot of sense. Gellert while being on in years had always had an abundance of young women that would throw themselves at him where ever it was they would go. And yet, every time he would receive an offer the man would turn them down without hesitation.

"Are all of your belongings packed? We will be apparating to the platform in a few seconds time." Harry didn't say anything; instead he pointed to where his second trunk sat in a corner of the room. "Are you not planning on bringing any of your other things, like your guitar?" Gellert asked searching the room for any sign of the boy's favorite instrument.

"Everything I'm taking has been shrunk and packed." Harry answered as he rolled to the edge of the bed and over, he landed lightly on his feet and made his way over to his desk where his sketchbook and coal pencils were kept. "I'll be using the duration of the train ride as a way to get some ideas out of my head and on to the page," he said, holding up the leather bound book where he kept his most treasured pieces of work.

"Then let us be off." Gellert watched with a sense of pride as the boy made the smallest of motions with his hand, shrinking his trunk before pocketing it. He and Albus both had been amazed when he had come to them and showed that even with the seal still in place that he was able to cast basic spells. Neither man had seen someone do as such; it was both frightening and astonishing to see. "Take my hand." He ordered.

Doing as he said to, Harry placed his hand in the man's and erected his still new mental shields just in time to lessen the feeling of being forced through a straw.

Flawlessly the duo landed on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. All across the platform were numerous groups of people saying goodbye to loved ones as around them children and teenagers were running and greeting friends that they had not seen since the last school year had ended.

Harry was absorbed in creature gazing when Gellert took him lightly by the arm and steered him away from the apparition point. They stopped behind one of the many pillars holding up the cover on the platform and out of sight of the majority of the station.

Leaning down, Gellert said in a voice that Harry was only just able to hear over the hustle and bustle of all the different people. "Have a safe trip; I'll see you tonight at the sorting."

Surprise washed over Harry's features as he looked up at the older man. "You'll be there - at the sorting?" His mental shields down now that the trip to their location was over, his emotions were not only showing on his face but were clearly projected in his voice, allowing Gellert to hear how relieved he was.

"Yes I will be," Gellert replied letting his own shields down as well, hoping to comfort the perturbed boy with his calming voice. "All the parents who have children that will be going through a creature awakening are allowed to attend. So you have nothing to worry about. If anything is to go wrong, though with whom your parents were I highly doubt you'll have anything to worry about, but just in case I'll be there for you." Harry beamed up at the man who he saw as a grandfather. Unable to keep his excitement down he lunged out faster than Gellert could stop him and hugged the man. Gellert was taken aback for only a second before he returned the gesture in kind.

Gellert gazed over the crowd with the precision of a hawk demon when he heard someone shout, "There they are!" He quickly spotted a large group of reporters who had been standing by the fireplaces made for flooing onto the platform. It was their unfortunate luck that they had hidden in a place where the flooing area was in direct view to the group. At the head of the gathering of now running journalist was the vile creature known as Rita Skeeter, her eyes fixed solely on Harry as her Quick-Quotes Quill trailed along in the air behind her like a winged puppy.

"Hurry up and get on the train if you want to avoid the oncoming storm," he told Harry as he released him from the hug. The boy glanced over his shoulder and felt his eyes widen at the stampeding group.

"Alright I'll see you tonight," he said quickly. He dashed across the station and toward the train weaving in and out of families and students alike. Harry could feel part of the reporters break off from the rest to start coming after him, while the other half continued on their course to Gellert who was already turning in place and disappearing. By the time those who had chosen to come after him had made their way through the same people Harry had passed in-between, he had already bounded up the stairs leading onto the Hogwarts Express and was in search of a place to sit.

It was still fairly early making it easy for Harry to find an empty compartment to claim as his own. With his trunk shrunk and in his pocket he had no need to place it up in the storage racks, which meant that he was free to start on his sketches right away. With his back placed against the wall facing the entrance to the compartment and his feet in the seat so as to use his knees as press for his sketchbook, he set to work on some of his already started pieces that he had been unable to find time to finish in the past month.

Since learning of the magic world he had found many a muse to fuel his creativity, the first sketch he had made after seeing magic for the first time was of Gellert's patronus. The Sphinx's almond shaped eyes had been burned into his mind along with the rest of its majestic beauty. Harry had failed to get any sleep that night; he had been too busy drawing her glowing form in so many different ways.

It was as he was trying to decide between two of his already started works that a knock came at the door. Glancing away from the drawn females in his book, he found himself staring at young redhead with the most amazing green eyes. He was amazed that her peaches-and-cream skin was devoid of any freckles, the only thing gracing her cheeks was a light blush that appeared when she met his eyes.

Realizing that he was being incredibly rude by staring at the pretty girl as she stood there waiting for him to give her the go ahead to come in or tell her to leave, Harry hastily jumped to his feet and opened the door for her with a friendly smile. "Hello."

"Hi," she greeted back brightly. "I know this will come off as very unusual, but I was looking for an empty compartment, when I came to the realization that if I were to find one, then I'd not only be nervous, but lonely as well. That's when I saw you sitting in here alone and thought that you might like some company. Would you mind terribly if I were to stay in here with you?" He could feel the nervousness in her words and it made his smile widen.

"Not at all," he said taking a step back to allow her access to the compartment. "My name's Harry by the way."

"Lily Evans," she replied taking a seat right next to him once he was seated.

Before anything else could be said between the two, they heard a high pitched squeal and screams coming from outside the compartment door. Harry stood up planning to see what was happening just as a pretty, curly haired blonde with sheep horns curling out of both sides of her head ran by their compartment door window, laughing and letting out excited and playful screams. Seconds later a tall dark skinned boy who had what looked suspiciously like wolf-ears popping up out of his mane of wild gray hair passed by as well, grinning like a mad man as he gave chase.

Not sure what else to do Harry sat back down and looked over at a blank faced Lily. Seconds passed and before either of them knew why they had broken out in laughter and giggles. The randomness of the moment they had just shared got to the two preteens.

"Even the simplest of things are amazing when it deals with magic," Lily commented as her giggling died down, letting out a small sigh. Harry nodded his agreement.

"You're right, it seems like every time I think I've gotten everything figured out about the world around me, something new and exciting pops up."

Lily gave him a slightly surprised look as he picked up his sketch book and set to work. "I don't know why, but for some reason I had expected you to have come from a magical background... You give off an air of self-confidence that I'd expect from someone who's spent their entire life around magic."

Harry chuckled as he opened his book to where incomplete pictures of Fleur and Hedwig were. "You can say that, though I had no idea about the magical world until little over a month ago. Both of my parents were magical beings, but I was raised without knowledge of what they were or of the hidden world around me," he confided to the redhead. When telling her this he had not been expecting to earn a look of understanding from the girl.

"It's not spot on, but my own story is similar," Lily confessed softly, suddenly finding her clasped hands interesting. "It came as huge shock to me when I found out that not only was I adopted but a witch as well. It was more of the latter that got to me, as I had figured out the first over a year ago on my own. It wasn't exactly hard to work out really; you see my parents and sister Petunia all possess blonde hair and blue eyes." Harry wasn't sure why the girl was telling him all this, but he said nothing to dissuade her from sharing her story. He was guessing that she had few people that she could talk about all this with, and it was more than likely all of those people were the ones who this story pertained to.

"Then to add even more to the pile, when I was getting my robes my family and I found out that at least one of my birth parents had creature blood in him or her." Lily continued to gaze down at her hands as she went on with her story. "All of this would be fine; it's just that I feel like my sister resents me for what I am and what I could possibly be."

"That... that sounds terrible," he admitted. Seeing that she looked down he decided to share more with her as well. "If it makes you feel any better I learned about the existence of magic from my adoptive grandfather when he sent a hulking fireball at me. Instead of hitting me it hit my bed, burning it to a crisp and if that wasn't enough he sent a glowing sphinx at me that he cast a spell on to make me practically fall in love with it... Oh, and I also found out that he's into men, when he and his life partner started making out in front of me." As he finished his story Harry noticed that Lily, who was still staring at her hands, was biting her bottom lip in an attempt to keep from laughing.

"Go ahead, laugh it up," he said in a serious tone as he barely contained his own laughter. "I'd like to see you witness two century old men copping feels on one another and walk away without any mental scarring." It was as he finished speaking that Lily lost her fight with her laughter making Harry follow seconds after.

Draco, Hedwig, and Fleur found them this way, leaning against each other, his sketch book laying forgotten in the floor as he and the unknown redhead shook from their laughter.

"Hello Harry," Hedwig greeted him pleasantly as she took up the spot next to him. Fleur grabbed Harry's book from the floor and set next to Draco, who was staring at Lily with a small blush tinting his cheeks.

"Hey guys," Harry greeted as he set up and smiled at the group. "This is my new friend Lily," he said indicating the redhead next to him. "Lily these are my friends Hedwig, Draco, and Fleur." Like he had for her, Harry pointed each person out to Lily. When he reached Fleur he went silent as he realized what it was that she had in her hands.

"It's nice to meet you all," Lily said unaware of what was going on with her friend.

The only person to notice that something was bothering Harry was Hedwig who was looking between Harry and the leather bound book in Fleur's hands that he was fixated on. Rising to her feet Hedwig made her way over to her sister and sat next to her, joining her in gazing at their friend's beautiful work.

"When did the two of you meet?" Draco asked Harry without paying attention to his sisters as they let out small gasps at the book's contents.

"Just a little while ago," Harry answered absentmindedly. His eyes had yet to leave the book Fleur was holding.

He was worried how the sisters would react when they saw the last two pages that he had worked on, both of the unfinished pieces were of them and he hadn't told them about his drawings or that he was using them for one. Hedwig's was of when she had found her foci at Olivander's. When she had picked up the rune covered feather that was made out of the same material as Harry's own foci, the room had filled with a light breeze before numerous snow-white feathers appeared all around the room. The sight had been amazing to behold and ever since Harry had been sketching it, attempting to get it just right and make it as beautiful as the actual scene had been.

Fleur's was much simpler but was nonetheless just as beautiful. After meeting the Malfoys for the first time the family had invited Harry and Gellert over many times. The picture was one of Fleur laughing after she, Harry, and Hedwig had watched Draco wipeout trying to do tricks on his flying carpet. Her smile had held the same effect for him as the sphinx and when Hedwig had bonded with her foci.

"Harry," Lily said gaining his attention by laying her small hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just..." He trailed off as the two girls turned onto the dreaded page. There was a moment of stillness on both their parts that made Harry wonder if they were going to think of him as some kind of stalker and flip out on him.

"Did you draw these?" Hedwig asked tearing her eyes away from her picture focusing her piercing amber orbs on him.

Harry sent her a small, bashful nod. "I tend to draw scenes and people that get stuck in my head," he told her truthfully as he watched the group fawn over his sketches.

"They're stunning," Lily gasped in amazement. Draco took one look at how his sisters had been drawn before sending Harry a raised eyebrow that slowly turned into an evil smirk.

"Don't I get a picture as well?" Draco wore a smug look that irritated and amused Harry at the same time.

Harry let out an obviously fake and sarcastic laugh. "I only place my more important works in there," he informed him, gaining his own smug look. "But if you have a napkin or a piece of bathroom tissue on you, I'll be more than willing to render a picture of a donkey in your likeness."

"Belt up, tosser!" Draco quipped, only to be cut off by Fleur who lightly smacked his shoulder before he could say more.

"Harry, these are..." Fleur shook her head trying to find a word to do them justice. "Breathtaking! The amount of detail in each drawing is beyond astonishing to see. It's almost like each one is alive, I wouldn't be surprised if you told me there was an animation spell on each piece."

Harry gave a soft smile, relieved that the girls hadn't taken the pictures in the wrong way. "Thank you, I put a lot of time and effort into each piece I draw, so that every one of them conveys a story with a single glance, and numerous others the more time you spend gazing at them."

Fleur smiled as she nodded her understanding of his words. Closing the leather bound sketchbook, she got up and sat by his side. "I hope in the future you'll let me see more of drawings," she said handing it back to him.

"I'd like that."

The remainder of the ride was spent talking amongst the group of five. In this time Harry took advantage of having the girls near to finish his sketches of Fleur and Hedwig and start one of Lily once he received her excited consent. Harry however, wasn't the only one to use the time for more than just simple chatting. Lily used the time to ask the other four questions about things she hadn't been able to gain knowledge of from the books she had purchased in Diagon Alley. Surprisingly it was Harry who was the biggest help out of those gathered. He had only known of the magical world for a little under a month and a half, but already he knew as much as most children who had been raised in it... almost.

There were still things that when he learned about them that threw him for a loop, one example of this was the fact that it wasn't uncommon for men to have more than one wife. He had learned this after he had seen a picture of Narcissa's family. The woman had two sisters, both of which were completely human and had been mothered by her father's first wife, with her mother being his second. He had asked if the same right of having more than one spouse was given to women and had found out that that they were, but that it was rare for any female outside the race of demons called succubus to embrace such a life style.

Harry, followed closely by the others, stepped off the train onto the crowded Hogsmeade station platform. All of them with the exception being Fleur had on what were called awakening suits. Each one was made of leather that had been charmed to grow with its wearer.

Right away Harry caught sight of the half giant he had first met at Gringotts, Hagrid, waving a lantern and calling out for all first years to come to him.

"I'll see you four up at the school soon, have fun," Fleur said in way of farewell sending them a small wave. Turning she headed for a group of three girls, two who were wearing matching black robes with the Ravenclaw house crest upon their chest while the other wore the Gryffindor crest as Fleur did. Harry watched as all four climbed into a carriage that was hooked up to strange, leathery-skinned horses with giant bat-like wings.

"Come on Harry," Lily said, grabbing his hand and pulling him toward where all the other first years were gathered; Hedwig and a putout looking Draco following close behind.

Hagrid greeted Harry like an old friend, asking him how he had been and the like, before leading the entire group nervous first years to a fleet of large rowboats. Harry and those he had sat with on the train were joined by a set of twin girls who held hands the entire trip across the lake.

Once they had docked and had safely gotten out of the boats, Hagrid once again lead the group to where they needed to go, this time to two ancient doors that were double the half giant's height. Even with the man's impressive size it still shocked the entire group to see him open the entrance with such ease. Their shock quickly shifted to awe as they caught their first look at the colossal Entrance Hall. The ceilings that would take multiple people Hagrid's height standing on each other's shoulders to reach, the way the pillars and the large set of stairs leading up into the castle all looked to be carved from one piece of stone, and the towering suits of armor and the moving portraits that covered almost every inch of every wall. It all left the group of first years in awe, even those who were from the magical world and had seen things like it couldn't deny that Hogwarts was an amazing sight.

A chuckling Hagrid showed the group of speechless first years to a side chamber, telling them that another professor would soon come to brief them prior to the awakening.

"I'm so nervous," Lily said to the group as she hopped up and down in place to burn some of her nervous energy. "I'm so worried about what I'll turn out to be." Hedwig nodded in understanding as she shifted subtly from foot to foot.

"I know what you mean," Hedwig admitted quietly. "I had no way of knowing who or what my parents were. Before I came to live with my family I was found in Kielder Forest without any memory of whom I was. The only reason I've known for so long that I have creature blood in me is that a healer was the one to find me. She casted a number of spells on me to see if I was alright and just happen to stumble across signs of my nature in one of her scans." Harry knew what the girls were feeling but didn't want to reveal anything at the moment so settled for giving them both understanding looks.

Dumbledore had come to him not long after their first meeting and brought up the issue of whether or not he wished to continue to keep his mother's species a secret, or if he wanted it to be common knowledge what he and his ancestors were. The ancient man had given him both advantages and disadvantages to both choices, with the added message that he wouldn't force him to do either, that now that he was aware of the risk and gains of both it was his right as the last of his kind to go down the path that he so desired.

Harry had been unsure of what to do and after hours of debating with himself had eventually asked Gellert what he thought his mother would have wanted of him. Gellert had told him that Susan had hated having to hide what she was, but that if he truly wanted to know more about what she would have thought of the subject that he should ask Narcissa as she was one of the few who knew of his mother's nature.

He remembered the soft smile she had worn when he asked her about his dilemma; it was so caring and nurturing that he had wondered if that was how his own mother would have looked at him had she still been alive.

Narcissa, just as Gellert had, told him that his mother resented her family for all of the traditions and restraints they tried to place her under and that she had once told her that she was entertaining the idea of telling the public what she was. This had been the deciding factor for Harry. If Susan had been thinking of telling the world what she and their family were then why shouldn't he?

It was already set with Albus, at the awakening they would see what would happen and move on from there. There was a chance that he wouldn't gain any Elven like characteristics or those of a demon; then again there was just as much chance he could gain both. There just wasn't enough information to know what was going to happen.

"So is Harry Potter here or not?" Called a pompous voice from the middle of the gathered students.

Harry, Hedwig and Draco all looked for who it was that had spoken so obnoxiously. As he searched for the owner of the annoying voice he saw that Lily was staring at him with surprise filling her emerald colored eyes; it was obvious that one of the things she had learned from the books she had bought was his name and what he was famous for. He sent her a small nod to answer her unasked question, but held his finger to his lips asking her to keep it a secret. He was relieved to see her surprise give way to an understanding smile as she nodded to keeping quiet.

"No, then," said a boy who walked directly by Harry and his group as he commanded the rooms attention. "I don't blame him for not wanting to show up; I'd be ashamed too if I had been raised by what he has."

"What did you say?" Harry asked stepping forward upon the boy's slight against Gellert.

The sandy haired boy sneered as he gave Harry a once over. "What do you care if I insult Potter and his prick lovi-" The rest of his words were cut off when Harry's fist flashed out catching him straight in the mouth, sending him to the floor where he stayed. His actions earned him screams from those who were frightened by such a sudden act of violence and even a few laughs from some who enjoyed what he had done. Before anything could be said or done Professor, McGonagall entered the room to see him standing over the unconscious boy.

"Mr. Potter," she said placing her stern glare onto Harry. There was a collective gasp to travel through the group of first years at the revelation of who he was and the realization of why he had done what he had. Ignoring the students' surprise McGonagall continued to focus on Harry. "Do you mind telling me what has happened to this young man?"

"He was trying to show off in front of everyone and got hurt doing so," Harry answered her, while thinking, 'Technically not a lie!' McGonagall looked down at the boy once more and saw that it was Theodore Nott, upon hearing his story and knowing of the boy's reputation she nodded. Pulling her wand out she levitated him to her side, giving the group a warning to not copy the boy's actions she turned and left to take Theodore to the school nurse.

"You two are going to be trouble," Hedwig commented, giving him a disapproving look that Harry could tell she was forcing as a way to keep her approval of his actions hidden. "You may not be so lucky as to get away without punishment next time, use discretion in the future."

"Spoken like a true Slytherin," Draco commented in obvious pride for his sister. "Though I have to say it blew my mind at how fast that hit was. I heard it more than I saw it. That physical training with Gellert must have really of paid off." Harry simply nodded that it had.

"Are you alright Harry?" Lily asked as she lightly took his hand in hers, exposing where his hand had been cut on the boy's teeth. "You're bleeding," she pointed out sounding upset.

"Its fine, Lily, no need to fret." Ignoring the glare he had no idea why Draco was sending him, Harry placed his free hand on top of his injured one, being sure to come into contact with his chain he whispered the minor healing spell he had read about. "_Episkey!_" Lily released a small gasp when she felt his entire hand heat up as a result of the casted healing spell. Pulling his hand away he showed the group his knuckles to be free of any marring wounds. "See, good as new."

Seeing the wound was in fact gone, Hedwig and Lily had looked to each other wide eyed. They were aware that it should have been impossible for him to cast magic as the seal cut off even accidental magic.

As his friends inspected his hand for any sign of its previous wound McGonagall entered the room once again. "Now then, my name is Professor McGonagall, and I will be teaching you Transfiguration during your years here at Hogwarts."

"Soon you will all be sorted into one of the four houses of Hogwarts, and half of that will go through the true awakening process. First however, before any of this takes place, I will tell you about the houses here at Hogwarts and what they stand for. There is Hufflepuff, the house of those who are loyal and hardworking to the end. Ravenclaw, home to those who hold knowledge and its pursuit above all else. Slytherin is where those who are cunning and ambitious go to grow. And finally Gryffindor, home of those who show courage and daring in the face of what others flee from."

"The badger, the eagle, the snake, and the lion. Each has been the home to many a great and powerful beings. It is your choice if you will be one of those whose name will be remembered forever and always. Welcome to Hogwarts School for Magical Beings. May you use your time here wisely."

The chamber teemed with awe filled silence. All of the nervous energy that had been coming off the first years in waves was now replaced with a need and want to prove that they were worthy. To be one of those whose name would go down in history and make whatever house they were to be sorted into proud to call them a member.

"Follow me." McGonagall led them out of the chamber to a set of doors just as large as those they had come through when entering the castle. With the lightest of touches, the doors swung open exposing the dining hall. Four tables packed with students of varying species, were sitting parallel to one another with gathering of smaller tables sitting outside the four main ones for the parents attending the event to sit. There was one final table at the head of the room sitting upon a platform that Harry could tell was reserved for Professors. He was surprised however, to see Gellert sitting at this same table.

"Welcome, one and all, to another year at Hogwarts." Dumbledore said in greeting earning enthusiastic applause as he rose to his feet to better address those gathered. "I am Headmaster Albus Dumbledore and before we begin the proceedings we must first cover subjects that some of you may be unable to sit for after your awakening." Seeing the look of alarm on some of the first years faces Dumbledore smiled kindly down at them. "There is no need to worry young ones, I only mean to say that the experience of having your magic, abilities, and nature unlocked can be tiring. There is no need to worry of harm coming to you."

Albus' smile grew when he saw his words had their desired affect calming the children. "Tomorrow is Monday and classes for second to seventh years will begin as is normal. For the first years however, you will be given the day to adjust to any changes you may experience during the awakening. If you are one of the few who will only have their magic unlocked then enjoy the day by exploring the castle grounds and getting to know your fellow year mates."

"And for those of you wondering who the man beside me is," Albus said gesturing to Gellert. "This is Professor Grindelwald, your new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor." At once the hall was swarming with the excited buzzing of the students. All were wondering what it was going to be like to learn from the war hero. Harry was able to catch the man's eye for the briefest of seconds and swore he saw a smug look sent his way. Gellert knew he hated being surprised and was more than likely enjoying his look of shock.

Having waited for the chatter to die down some, Albus once again gained the attention of all those in attendance. "Tryouts for both the house Quidditch teams and the qualifiers for the Combat League will be announced at a later date. And finally everyone should note that the third floor corridor is restricted to all who do not wish to die agony filled deaths." Dumbledore smiled charmingly at the now shocked and silent hall. "And without further ado, let the Awakening commence!"

McGonagall walked in at that moment with an old, tattered wizard's hat in her grasp. Coming to a stop in front of both the staff table and the gathered first years, she held the worn hat out to her side by the tip of its point. All was quiet for only seconds but what felt like an eternity to all of those who were waiting for things to begin, when all of a sudden a rip opened up in the front of the hat that looked strangely like a mouth before it proceeded to start singing. Harry and many others like him stared wide eyed as the hat belted out a long story about how the school and he came to be. When it had finished the hall filled with applause that rivaled that in which Albus had received.

"So to recap, the hat talks, its name is Alistair, and more than likely before this whole thing is over we're going to be forced to stick our heads up his ass," Harry deadpanned as he continued to stare fixated at the hat. All three chose not to speak only to nod, the oddity of the hat getting to them all. "Oh joy," he muttered unenthusiastically.

"When I call your name, please come forth and place Alistair upon your head. And remember, if there is a possibility that you may outgrow him or that you will gain horns in the process, please remove him when you feel the changes start to take effect." Fixing the first years with a look that she hoped reinforced her request she began. "Abbott Hannah!"

A small girl in pigtails shakily made her way up to where McGonagall was standing and took the hat from her. It was obvious right away that she was a normal witch by her lack of awaking suit, but nonetheless Harry and the others were interested in seeing what it would look like to have your magic released. The hat went onto her head and everything was quiet for a time. Suddenly the silence that had been overtaking everyone was shattered when the hat let out a yell of 'Hufflepuff' and the girl started to glow a light blue color that lasted for a few seconds before it faded into her skin.

As the red faced girl pulled the hat off her head the table full of people wearing the Hufflepuff crest exploded into applause that lasted until after she had taken her seat. After Hannah was boy named Terry and then a girl name Mandy, both of which were normal magic users, it wasn't until 'Brown Lavender' was called that they were able to see what a creature awakening looked like.

The pretty little blond ran as fast as she could up to McGonagall. Taking the hat from the woman she sat on the floor before placing it upon her head. The hall was silent for only seconds before a call of 'Gryffindor' filled the air.

The entire hall leaned forward as one to see what would happen next. The same blue glow as had been around Hannah covered Lavender's body at the same time her legs stared to melt together, her pants slowly turned into a skirt so as to keep her modesty, but still allow her now long, blue powerful looking tail to grow. When it was all said and done, she had gained gills along the sides of her neck and patches of shimmering blue and gold scales along the tops of her forearms and at the outside corners of her eyes, both groupings matched her now longer than her torso length tail perfectly.

No one knew who started it, but the hall quickly filled with cheers from all of those in attendance. Lavender being a good sport about it all waved her fin at the crowd making the cheering and support she was receiving rise to new levels. A man and woman that Harry assumed was her mother and father made their way over to their now transformed mermaid daughter with wide pride filled smiles on their faces. The man lifted Lavender into a fatherly hug that her mother joined seconds later.

It took some time but eventually things got back under way. The next to turn was a girl named Bulstrode, Millicent. She was a thick set girl that had short hair that made her look like a chubby school boy.

Harry frowned when Draco looked to be about to comment on the girl's looks, when much to his relief Hedwig's hand flashed out a great deal harder than Harry had ever seen Fleur's do and slapped him in the back of the head making a loud noise that drew most of the hall's attention.

"Damn it," hissed Draco, "why does everyone hit me?" Harry was actually shaking as he tried to contain his laughter at the two siblings.

It wasn't until a call of 'Slytherin' filled the air that most of the hall turned back to the girl being sorted. Slowly the girl went from overweight and unattractive to having the body of a beautiful fourteen year old that looked to be the complete opposite of her original form. Harry was one of the few males to be lucky enough to have a natural resistance to controlling auras and had the extra protection of mental shields guarding his mind. Those that weren't as lucky had gained glazed looks in their eyes and seemed ready to do anything the girl told them to.

Harry tapped Lily and Hedwig on the shoulder and pointed to Draco who was fighting valiantly against the pull he was feeling, but looked to be slowly losing his free will.

"It would serve him right to be put under the spell of a Succubus for trying to make fun of her moments ago," Hedwig said as she sent her brother an exasperated look. "But if I were to allow him to become her plaything mother might become upset." Harry was already wincing before her hand made contact with the back of Draco's head once more.

After Millicent had taken her seat at the Slytherins table (still in her new form) the awakening started up again. Faster than had been expected it was time for the first of their small group of friends to head up and be awakened. "Evans, Lily!" Harry sent her an encouraging smile and a thumbs up that calmed her raging nerves.

As she bound up the stairs a now tense Draco leaned over to Harry. "I don't like that Lily girl," he said staring after her. "I don't think we should hang out with her anymore." Harry and Hedwig looked at him at the same time with twin looks of incredulousness.

"Speak for yourself mate, I like her." Hedwig nodded her agreement to Harry's words.

"She's better company than you are, Draco," Hedwig told him, making the boy growl. "Don't go trying to start something, or try and force ultimatums on people. You'll more than likely loose!" Draco glared at her but saw that Harry hadn't disagreed with her so let the whole thing drop.

Back up with Lily the hat released a cry of 'Gryffindor' at the same time a green glow covered her body. Harry watched in amazement as her skin gained a light green tint to it and her ears started to turn slightly pointy. The emerald green of her eyes expanded until there wasn't any other color to be seen in them. And from her back sprouted four translucent green wings that were a cross between a butterfly's and a leaves of Ivy.

Lily sat where she was and watched as her skin took on its green hue. It was so strange to feel her ears grow pointed and for wings to sprout from her back. However noting could prepare her for the experience of suddenly shrinking down to a size smaller than her human form's palm. She found herself tangled up inside Alistair and falling toward the now dangerously far away floor.

All of the teachers and even some of the parents and students had their foci drawn and ready to attempt and help her, but Harry had beat them all. As soon as he saw her form start to grow smaller he had realized the hat would fall on her sending them both toward the floor. With a speed that he had thanks to training with Gellert for so many years, he had dashed up the stairs and onto the platform and had caught both Lily and the hat only an inch off the ground.

"Lily, are you alright?" Harry asked her in a panic as he handled the hat as gently as he could, turning it to look inside. "You didn't hurt your wings did you?" Inside was scared and wild haired Lily, but other than looking shaken up she was fine.

"Yes... I'm fin-" Lily stopped speaking as she glanced up at the giant Harry. His beautiful eyes were filled with worry for her wellbeing. He was so kind and handsome, and even though he was famous and talented he didn't try and brag about either one. And now... now he had saved her from the very least breaking her back. He was in a word, perfect.

All of these thoughts swam through her once brilliant mind, but now with the added effects of her fairy nature they were processed at untold speeds. The longer she looked at him the more perfect he became and before she knew it something in her had clicked into place. He was Perfect... perfect for her. She was his and he was hers. They belonged together.

"Lily," Harry called softly as he placed the now beyond beautiful girl in the palm of his hand and gave Alistair to Professor McGonagall. "Evans, are you all right? You didn't hit your pretty little head on the way down did you?" His comment about her being pretty earned him a deep green blush from the palm sized girl.

Feeling lost and not knowing what else to do Harry looked to Albus and Gellert just as the two men were sharing a knowing look with one another. When they finally did turn their attention to Harry it was Albus who acted.

"Ms. Evans," called the elderly man. When she failed to look away from Harry he tried once again. "Ms. Evans... Lily dear..." A chuckle escaped Harry as he realized that Lily was ignoring the man who was arguably the strongest wizard alive.

"Lily, Dumbledore is talking to you." It looked as if his words had gotten through to her when her eyes widened slightly. Turning in his palm but keeping a firm hold of his thumb, Lily looked to Albus to see what he wanted.

"Hello Ms. Evans," Dumbledore greeted her lightly. "It's important that we find out how much Fae blood is running through you're veins. So if you'll just picture yourself to your full size we can take you to Madam Pomfrey, and find out if you have done something that only a non-full blooded Fae can do called, _Engraving_."

"Will I have to leave Harry?" Lily asked tightening her grip on his thumb.

"Yes, I'm af-"

"NO!" She yelled as loudly as her little lungs would let her, her grip on his thumb now so tight that it actually stung. "I won't leave him!" Harry was reminded of what Gellert had said about Fairy's being malice filled creatures by the way the redhead was glaring up at the ancient man.

"If it's important that she gets checked up, I can be awoken later, or if it's alright with you Headmaster, I can do it now."

He was silent for only a few seconds before he nodded. "Let's go with the second idea, shall we?" Albus gestured him toward Professor McGonagall who was holding a now grumbling Alistair who didn't look pleased at the prospect of being handled by Harry again. "Lily, if you would, please stay here until Harry has finished his awakening." Lily didn't look happy with it but made no attempt to stop Harry when he set her on the professors' table.

As he turned to go put on Alistair he caught the eye of a pale skinned man with a large nose and long black hair that was pulled up and away from his face. He looked to be the strict type but when their eyes met he sent Harry the smallest of nods that he took to be the man wishing him luck.

Taking Alistair, he raised it to place it on his head when McGonagall called his name out for the school to hear. Gasps and whispering broke out immediately making Harry force back a groan. He didn't mind being famous and knew that it would someday be of help to him, but he'd prefer if he had been famous for something other than living while his parents died. The way it was now he felt as if he had so much to live up to and if he were to fail all of magical Britain would know.

Sending the Professor a glare he placed Alistair upon his head. For a second nothing happened causing him to wonder if something was wrong, and had even started to check to see if his mental shields were up when the hat screamed out his future house. "Gryffindor!" Almost immediately Harry felt something in him burst forth, releasing what he had always known, but had never knew was missing.

Lily and the rest of those in attendance watched as the shadows around the room started to slink toward Harry as the light from the candles and torches started to do the same. Everyone including Albus and Gellert watched in disbelief as the shadows came together to form the blackest of shadow that had been seen by any since before James Potter had died. At the same time a majority of the light in the room had come together and was now formed into what looked to be a solid white shadow. Only a few knew the snow colored form dancing with the absolute blackness was the powers of shadow and light.

Albus had only met two shadow users in his life time and knew of only one person who had control and power over light. The chances of the boy possessing both were astronomical, but here he was with both dancing around him like children would their mother. The sight sent chills down the elderly man's back. But it appeared that the show wasn't over yet, slowly the opposite but equally powerful forces started to corkscrew around him until the boy was encased in a cocoon of light and darkness.

Harry felt it, the changes that is. His features as they became sharper, his ears as they grew longer and pointer, his bones as they stretched as he gained a few inches in height, and if his mind wasn't playing tricks on him his skin felt as if a chill had traveled over every inch of it.

Slowly all the changes came to a stop. It was then that he realized that he could control what he instinctively knew to be shadow and light. He knew that the reason behind their spiraling around him was that he had wanted to get away from the whispers and staring before he had placed Alistair upon his head. It was as this thought crossed his mind that he also realized he couldn't hear what was going on outside of his cyclone of protection.

Lily waited with baited breath for Harry to show himself once more. It was as the black slinked back to the shadows and the white made its way back to the candles and torches that everyone caught sight of the new Harry. His skin was now a light shade of purple and his hair had turned as white as the light that had danced around him seconds before. He was taller and his face structure was sharper than had been, and his now longer ears protruded past the back of his head, but still fit him perfectly. She had thought of him as perfect before but when her eyes met his green and blue ones she now knew without a doubt that he was now beyond perfect.

All those who had been raised in the magical world and even most of those who hadn't knew right away what Harry was were now staring at the boy. His skin tone may have been different than the drawings of the elves they had seen but the features were a dead giveaway. At once shouts broke out all over the Great Hall, even amongst the adults. The hall was quickly descending into complete and total chaos as shouted questions were thrown at anyone who might have an answer. How was it that he had the blood of the children of magic running through his veins? What did it mean that one of the Elven race had showed up after being absent from the earth for millennia? Was he a full blooded elf, or was he perhaps an off breed that had resulted from how the Potters gained their powers.

As soon as the shadow and lights fell away Harry had only been just able to look Lily in the eyes before his senses over loaded. His sight increased until he could see the grains in the wood of the tables and the individual fibers and stitching patterns of all the robes he caught glances at, no matter how far away they were. His hearing became so intense that he could hear every single breath being taken and the start of whispers all the way across the hall. But worse than the first two was his sense of smelling increasing. All around the room the scents of magical creatures filled his nostrils. The smell of those who were in need of a washing, the sweet scent of those like Fleur and Millicent who gave off the sweetest of aromas, smells he could not identify and even the smell of blood from the gathered females who were experiencing their menstrual cycles.

To make matters worse those around the room started screaming at one another and at him, viciously tearing at his eardrums. Trying to lessen all that he was experiencing he hooked his arms around the back of his head and pressed his forearms to his ears as he crouched down. He was unaware that those who had been watching him at that moment saw him as nothing more than a blur as he crouched down.

Albus and Gellert both shot off loud bangs from the tips of their wands that silenced the entire hall with the exception of Harry who screamed at the sudden piercing bangs that had filled his head.

"STOP IT!" Harry screamed from his crouched position. It was such a pain filled scream that no one dared utter a word for fear of causing the boy further distress. "SHUT THE HELL UP!"

Gellert, knowing what was happening to his adopted grandson, shot an overpowered stunner at the boy, releasing him from the agony his awakened senses were putting him through.

**AN: So Lily is one of the Fae or at the least part fae, and Harry is a Dark Elf. You got to see that Harry will be gifted in magic and he has powers over shadow and light... what do you think? I'm trying to get across that Harry is at that place where he knows that girls are pretty and is interested in them, but that he's young enough to not really be trying to sleep with any pretty girl he sees - to make him seem mature and childish at the same time. The character I'm having the most trouble with is Hedwig. I want to keep her true to her character in canon, but to do so will make her seem like a bitch at times. Don't get me wrong, I love Hedwig and it killed me when she died in canon, but can any of you say she wouldn't be a bit bitchy in human form. And what about Gellert taking Quirrels place, can you guess who it is that will be going for the stone? In future chapters I'm going to try and go with chapters that are about this long or maybe just a tad shorter. That way I can get them out faster and it makes them easier to manage. Finally a big thank you to all those who reviewed last time!**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: This chapter was a huge pain but I had to get all that happens in it out before I could move on with the story. Thanks to lilyevans12681998 for taking the time to beta for me, you're a huge help. And just a heads up the poll is still open, go make your choice because there is only **_**ONE**_** spot in the harem up for grabs and there is no guarantee there will be a fourth in the pairing.**

Harry regained consciousness rather late the morning after the awakening. His back was stiff from the thin hard mattress he was laying upon and for a reason that was beyond him, his arm was asleep. His discomfort was only added to by the multitude of unpleasant smells that were bombarding him, making the thought of opening his eyes unappealing.

Grimacing, Harry turned his head away from where the unwanted smells were originating from only to stiffen when a mouthwatering scent killed any and all traces of the chemical-like scent that had been turning his stomach seconds before. He unconsciously found himself leaning toward the unidentified smell and realized as he did so that the scent was clinging to him and the air around him.

Wanting to know what the scent was coming from but remembering how the mixture of his sight, hearing and his ability to smell had nearly killed him the night before, he slowly cracked his eyes open. Immediately it became clear both why his arm was asleep and the source from which the smell was coming from. Wrapped around his arm was a full sized, still transformed sleeping Lily Evans. She looked so peaceful with his arm pulled as close to her body as she could, using his shoulder as a place to rest her head on.

Harry's surprise at being used like a human pillow was quickly replaced when his inquisitive nature overtook him. _How is she back to her normal size but still has the appearance of a fairy?_

However, even his pondering of her transformation took a backseat as the artist in him started to focus more closely on the pretty girl clinging to him. The mixture of her deep red hair and the green of her skin and translucent wings were fascinating to behold. Carefully, as to not hurt or wake the still peacefully sleeping girl, he gently ran the back of his hand over her wings. They were the softest things Harry had ever had the pleasure of touching. The only thing that even came close to their texture was the freshly made silk he had once touched while in China and even that felt dry and coarse compared to the girl's new appendages. He would have been lost for hours sitting there enjoying the feel of his skin against her wings had it not been for the clearing of a throat behind him.

"You say it's creepy for me to pop up like I do, but is it really any worse than molesting a female as she slumbers?" Harry's head whipped around as a blazing, dark red stain now lit up his light purple skin.

"I wasn't molesting her-" Harry sudden stopped speaking when his sense started to intensify back to where they had been the night before. His head swam from the smell of dust and chemicals that filled the room. The sound of children screaming and laughing could be heard through the glassless windows; it was enough to make his head pound painfully. His sight sharpened to a point where he could see details about Gellert that had always gone unseen by his human eyes. The way the man stood slightly more on the leg that was angled behind him, in a way that he would be ready to move at a seconds notice. The way his wand barely protruded out of the sleeve of his suit. He had always known the man was a warrior at heart, but never before had he seen the signs as well as he did now.

"Harry, calm yourself and your senses should do so with you." Gellert gave his wand a wave, making a fluctuating white bubble appear around them that blocked out all sound and smell that wasn't within its domain.

Harry closed his eyes and took long deep breaths through his mouth that he exhaled through his nose. When he once again opened his mismatched eyes his senses had gone back to where they were before Gellert had startled him; however, he knew that they were still at least twice as strong at the moment, compared to where they had been the day before at this time. Looking to the elderly man Harry sent him a nod of appreciation for his help.

"That worked... to a point. My hearing, sight, and smell are all still stronger than they should be." Gellert nodded.

"The level they're at now is the new normal for you." Gellert informed him as he summoned a chair from across the room and into the bubble for him to sit upon. "When you experience any strong emotions your senses will rise to their full capability. While this may be a hindrance at the moment, they do so as a way for you to take in all that is going on around you. A defensive mechanism if you will. Over time you will grow used to them until you're able to have them going full blast twenty-four seven, including when you sleep."

"It's also a possibility for you to keep them where they are now at all times and only enhance them when you need them. And even though you haven't experienced it yet, it's not only those three senses that have gained a boost, your taste and touch have as well."

"Then when I felt her wings..." Harry glanced down at the still slumbering girl. When Gellert had surprised him he had set up pulling away from her, and yet she had still managed to keep a hold of his hand - the same one she had sat in the night before. "Was that why they felt so soft?"

"No, actually," Gellert answered. "All fae have wings that can only be described as heavenly velvety. I expect the first time you touch them, or experience any physically stimulating touch when your senses are at their maximum processing levels that you will be in for a... _treat_." Harry raised an eyebrow at the man.

"Are you perving out over there? That 'treat' comment of yours was a bit sketchy." He chuckled softly as the old man gave him a blank stare. "Give me that look all you want, it doesn't change the fact that you didn't deny it," he muttered under his breath as he glanced down at Lily's sleeping form. "What were the results for the test on her fae blood levels?"

"It appears one of her parents was a full blooded fae while the other was a type of nature spirit that was a quarter fae themselves. She will be an abundantly powerful ally to have in the future."

Harry ran his free hand through her soft, scarlet hair. He didn't know how to explain it or why it was that he felt the way he did, but he was experiencing a deep need and want to protect the innocent girl that lay next to him. He cared for her after only knowing her a day - it was strange feeling the way he did, but as of late he had been experiencing the same thing for a few other individuals as well. In all honesty he quite enjoyed it and didn't see anything wrong with it.

"Don't worry about the little beauty that has engraved on you, for now. There will be plenty of time later for you to fawn over her." Gellert sent the now glaring boy a twitch of his lips that only deepened the boy's annoyance.

"So its _Professor Grindelwald_ now is it?" Harry asked without bothering to hide his contempt. "A heads up would have been nice you know."

"You can be cross with me later; for now we should speak more of your changes. Last night when Madam Pomfrey scanned Lily, they did the same for you. It appears that you're the very first of your kind - the birth of a new species." Harry looked at him doubtfully, not sure what to make of this information.

"How can I be the first of a new species when my parents were two very different species themselves? And in the end does it really matter if I'm the first of my kind? It also means I'm the only one of my kind and doomed to be the last as well. Kind of a grim thought if you ask me." The longer he had to think about what he had been told the more upset he became. Not by the fact that he was the first of his kind but that both his mother's species and his father's family brand of demon had basically died out to make him what he was today.

"It very rarely happens, but when two species mix it can result in a new one being created. The fact that you're the first of you kind doesn't matter when it comes to reproducing. When a species is first created, it results in their genes becoming so potent that they act like a demon's does when they reproduce with a human. It won't matter what your mates are, Human, demon, spirit, or anything else, any children you have in the future will be full blooded Dark Elves, as you are."

Harry raised a questioning eyebrow. "Dark Elves? Not that it's a bad name - pretty cool actually, but shouldn't I as the first of my kind hold the right to name my species?"

Gellert sighed, reaching into his pocket he pulled out a copy of the Daily Prophet. "Last night, as you and Dumbledore had agreed upon if things were to get too far out of control, he told the school the history of your mother's family." Harry nodded; it had been his idea that if he were to change in such a way that would cause too much fuss or if he were to die from the change then Dumbledore was to tell the public about the Bones family secret. He was guessing things had started to get out of control again after he had lost consciousness, and that was why Dumbledore exposed what his family was, or to be more accurate once was.

"How it got out we don't know, but the information about the Bones, your scan showing up that you're a new species of magical creature, how you can control not only shadows as your father did but a second element as well, and the fact that a girl with fae blood has engraved on you has all been published in this morning's paper. All of Britain's magical community and more than likely most of the magical world now knows of you as the first ever Dark Elf."

Harry took the paper and scanned over the piece about him quickly. He was happy to see the article wasn't slandering in the slightest - in fact it seemed the writer was quite excited by the discovery that one of Britain's strongest family of demons and the once thought dead species had come together to form a new race of creature. Harry looked to find the author of the piece and was stunned to see that Rita Skeeter had been the writer. He had only heard bad things about the woman and how she twisted words and gave half-truths about anything she covered. Had someone told him beforehand that she was to be the one to do the article he would have been prepared for her to make him out to be some type of monster that killed virgins and ate babies.

Finishing the parts about him, he reluctantly put off reading the parts that covered the family histories of both his mother's and father's blood lines, placing the paper on his lap he let out a deep, shuddering sigh. "Gellert, if I'm the first of my kind, does that mean I have to be tested to see if I'm allowed to use magic?" The young boy recalled what he had been told about some species not being deemed responsible enough to be allowed the use of magic, as they could be a hazard to not only themselves but those around them as well.

"Fortunately for you, there are a number of things in your favor when it comes to dealing with the British Ministry of Magic that made it easy to get you and your species clearance right away. The first being that Dumbledore and I both hold a great deal of sway in the ministry. Then there's the fact that you're _you_, a son of two of Britain's most respected families and that you're a celebrity who stopped the darkest wizard of all time. And the final nail in the coffin, you're the last of the 'children born of magic' and that if they didn't accept you right away then they run a high chance of another nation coming and offering you a place in their country." Gellert chuckled lightly. "I think they're still worried that the last one might happen. The Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, along with many others, want to meet with you."

"Will I be meeting them?" The distaste in Harry's voice was easy to hear. He had met many important people in his travels and more times than not they were either good, but boring people or corrupt, money and power hungry individuals. He was guessing the magical world wasn't going to be all that different from the mundane in that respect.

"Not until December when you will be attending the annual Ministry Ball on Boxing Day." Gellert would have continued speaking but chose to stop there as he had spotted movement behind his grandson.

"Harry! You're awake!"

Even with his new found speed Harry only had just enough time to turn before he was tackled by the now awake Lily. Gellert chuckled as the girl landed on top of his charge, hugging him tightly to her and pinning his arms to his side. Both were halfway off the bed with only Harry's quick save by planting his foot keeping them from tumbling onto the cold, stone floor.

Harry couldn't fight the smile he gained at her excitement to see him. "It's nice to see you too, Lily." With little effort on his part Harry was able to wiggle one of his arms around her waist and slide them both back on to the bed.

"I'm so happy that you're alright," the green skinned girl gushed. Pulling only a few inches away from the source of her affections she gave him the sweetest smile he had ever received.

"Good morning, Lily," Gellert greeted her, giving Harry time to regain his composure and attempt to hide the blush staining his cheeks. "I'm happy to see that you no longer wish to kill myself and Headmaster Dumbledore." His blush almost completely gone Harry did a double take to see if he had heard the man right.

"What is he talking about?" Harry asked looking to Lily who was suddenly acting shy.

Her head bowed low, she peeked out at him through her hair looking adorable, her embarrassed emerald stare meeting his mismatched one. "Last night when Professors Dumbledore and Grindelwald shot off those loud bangs with their wands, it was obvious they had hurt you worse than you already were. So I made my displeasure known," she finished by sending a glare at the elderly man.

"She wasn't the only one," Gellert commented dryly, ignoring the girl as easily as he did Harry at times. "I was sure Narcissa was going to attempt to kill us last night. She saw you here to the infirmary made it back down the stairs to see her childrens' awakenings and then came back up before she left for her home."

By the time Gellert had finished speaking Harry was beaming at the man's misfortune. "Thank you for worrying about me," he said pulling Lily into a tight hug that had her blushing a lovely shade of green.

Gellert was forced to stop himself from rolling his eyes at the display of affection, but more so than that he fought himself to stop his laughter from bursting forth. The boy simply didn't understand what type of affect he had on young girls. Gellert could only guess how overloaded with joy the redhead must have been from the embrace.

"It's still quite early or rather late depending how you look at it, why don't you two go get some breakfast and then go explore the school grounds. If you're lucky some of your year mates may still be eating and you can join them."

The two first years nodded to the suggestion. It was as they rose to their feet that Harry remembered that he still had Gellert's copy of the Prophet. "Here you go..." he trailed off as he read something that caught his eye. "Look here," he exclaimed pointing at one of the stories on the front page. "Gringotts was broken into. It appears it happened a while ago. I'm surprised I don't remember hearing anything about it."

Taking the paper Gellert tucked it under his arm seconds before he dropped the white bubble around them. "It happened just the day after we visited Gringotts to gain access to your vaults. Luckily, the vault that was breached had already been emptied."

"I thought Gringotts was impossible to break into," Lily stated just as she started to give off a faint glow. Harry took a step forward; worried that something might be wrong with her when she shrunk like she had the night before. The difference this time though was that Lily wasn't tangled in anything and was able to use her tiny Ivy-like wings.

Gellert smiled when the small girl flew onto Harry's shoulder. Catching her balance Lily grasped a handful of his now snow-white hair, showing no sign that she was going to let it go or move from where she stood. "I'm ready," she beamed up at a bemused Harry. Seeing his look of confusion, Lily stared bashfully down at her feet. "You don't mind if I stay here... do you?" She asked in a voice that was as tiny as she.

"Not in the least, I was just a bit surprised is all," Harry told her earning a squeal of happiness.

Gellert audibly cleared his throat garnering the duo's attention. "To your earlier question Lily, you and Harry alike should know, _nothing_ in this world is impossible. More often than not, individuals place limits on what they can do by telling themselves that something is impossible, leading them to self-fulfilling prophecies. Anything is possible for anyone!"

HSFMB

With Lily sitting on his shoulder, her hand full of his white locks, Harry descended the staircase leading to the Entrance Hall that was surprisingly devoid of any students or faculty.

Had it not been for the small girl clinging to him, Harry would have been lost as to how to find the dining hall. The night before he had been unconscious when he had been from what Lily had told him, 'floated to the Hospital wing.'

It was just as the duo was about to cross over the threshold that connected the Entrance Hall to the Great Hall that a silvery figure dashed from around the door and into Harry and Lily. Automatically he steadied the person who had run into him while at the same time checked to make sure Lily hadn't been hurt from the collision.

"I'm sorry; I'm running late and- Harry!" Said boy recognized the voice as belonging to Fleur as she wrapped her arms around him and buried her head in his chest. "I wanted to come see you last night, but wasn't allowed to."

"It's fine," he said as they pulled away from each other. "I only woke up for the first time less than an hour ago."

"How are you feeling? You're not still in pain are you?" She asked while searching him over for any sign that he might have a relapse of what had been hurting him the night before. It was clear for Harry to see that she had been worried about his well-being.

"I'm perfectly fine," he reassured her, giving off a small laugh. "If anything I think I'm feeling better than I ever have before. Besides a short relapse this morning when my senses kicked into high gear on me again, everything feels pristine and new. It feels like for the past eleven years my mind and everything about me has been held back - as if I were being blanketed from being me." He chuckled softly as he finished speaking. He hadn't had much time to register everything he was feeling now that he had been awakened. As he informed her how he felt he was only just then really processing how his changes were making him feel. "I guess I sound a bit crazy this morning, huh?"

Fleur beamed at him, shaking her head, making her long silvery hair shimmer as sunlight hit it. "Not at all," she reassured him. "Many people feel that way after being awakened. I never experienced it myself - for some reason when the seal was placed on me it failed to work properly. That's why I was able to control my father - Lucius - as a small child."

"As a result of my seal malfunctioning, I've always been able to take my avian-like form and control my fire. It's also caused my allure to become stronger than even a full blooded Veela's." As she finished speaking a sad smile made its way to her lips.

Harry pulled his mental shields up to keep from squirming as she turned her intense eyes onto him. He so desperately wanted to move away from her piercing gaze but felt that doing so would hurt his friend, and that was one thing he certainly didn't want to do. He was unprepared when he felt her aura slam against the walls protecting his mind. He doubted he would have even noticed her attempt at controlling him had he not had his shields in place.

Gellert had tested how strong his resistances to mind controlling auras were by taking him to meet many different species that had such allures. After feeling Fleur's aura that day in Diagon Alley he hadn't been bothered by any other type of allure he had been exposed too. What bothered him though was why she was even attempting to ensnare him with her apparently advanced aura?

He was going to question her motives, but was halted when her aura vanished from the surface of his shields at the same time she started smiling at him with something in her eyes he had never before seen. Seeing her eyes virtually light up, the sight of them made Harry feel as if he had passed a test that was very important to the girl. After seeing her so happy for a reason he couldn't place he failed to find it in him to question her about why she had done what she did.

Before anything else could be said the air was filled with a shrill, piercing whistle. While Harry and the up until now silent Lily reacted to the unpleasant sound in the same way, both of them hating it and whatever it was that created it, Fleur looked ready to have a panic attack.

"Oh no, I'm going to be late for my first class! I'll see you at lunch Harry," Fleur yelled to him as she dashed for and through the massive entrance doors.

Watching her run away, Harry felt a sudden tugging on his hair. "You know I'm still here, right?" Lily asked staring up at him with wide emerald eyes that despite their color screamed 'doe' - her bottom lip jutted out cutely as she pouted at being ignored by him.

"Oh, hey Lily," he greeted her brightly. "I didn't see you there. How are you?"

"Harry!" She whined cutely.

"I'm kidding with you Evans, no need to worry," he reassured her. "I could never forget about you."

It was with a pleased fairy on his shoulder he entered the dining hall, pausing just long enough to see that Gellert had been correct in his assumption that only first years would be left in the hall. From the look of things most of those who had been sorted the night before had chosen to have a lay in this morning and were now enjoying a late breakfast as they chatted with their fellow house mates.

Harry searched for Hedwig and Draco at the Gryffindor table without finding any sign of them. When he finally did succeed in locating one of them it was Draco. He sat at the Slytherin table talking and laughing with a number of his house mates, one of which was the boy Harry had punched the night before. While Harry was slightly surprised by this, it didn't bother him that Malfoy was talking to the ignorant boy. Draco had to live in close quarters with the Nott boy and the rest of his year mates for the next seven years. It would have been unwise of Draco to start something with him over Harry's short altercation with Nott.

What did bother Harry though; enough so that he failed to notice the horn sticking out of Draco's forehead, was that he couldn't find Hedwig at any of the house tables. He was giving the hall a second searching sweep with his eyes when Lily gave his hair a small pull.

"You're being watched by the entire hall," she informed him. And she was right. Harry turned red as his focus shifted from the room at large to the individuals staring at him shamelessly, pointing and whispering, unfazed that they could be seen doing so.

Harry made for his house table, forcing himself not to run like he wanted to. All of the Gryffindor first years were sitting together, the only one not doing so was a girl with pretty wavy hair that he instantly recognized, sitting only a few spots down from the rest of the group pouring over a strange book.

"Do you mind if we sit with you, Hermione?"

Her eyes widened a small fraction when she realized who he was, whether it was because he was famous or that he was the boy she had met that day at the Leaky Cauldron he didn't know, however she was able to school her features before any normal person would have been able to notice her reaction.

"We?" she asked obviously not seeing Lily who was hidden in his hair on the opposite shoulder facing her. Harry grinned when her eyes widened for the second time when Lily revealed herself to her.

"Hello!"

Hermione looked back and forth between the two before a tiny smile graced her lips. "You can sit here if you want to."

"Thank you." Taking his seat Harry started pulling things he enjoyed eating toward him at the same time Lily hopped off his shoulder and returned to her full size. The sudden appearance of the winged, green skinned girl renewed the whispers around the hall.

"If you don't mind me asking, what type of book is that?" Lily asked Hermione. She failed to notice Hermione stiffen at her question, she was too absorbed by how Harry was suddenly acting. The young Dark Elf had stopped filling his plate and was now sniffing its contents.

"Does this smell... greasy to you?" Lifting his plate he held it up for Lily to sniff.

"No." she shook her head.

"Huh..." It took him a few seconds to realize that with his new senses, things that had always smelled and tasted one way would now be totally different. Cutting off a piece of his sausage he took a tentative bite and was pleasantly surprised when instead of being put off by it, he enjoyed it more than he had ever before. After he had finished off the rest of the meaty breakfast food, he tried a bit of everything that he could reach, being careful not to gorge himself or to eat in an unbecoming manner. Gellert would kill him if he didn't show proper manners, though had the man been there he would have been upset by his sniffing of his food.

Lily smiled fondly at him before turning her attention back on Hermione. "I'm sorry, I got a little distracted. I've never seen anything like that book of yours, it looks fascinating." The book in question had a cover and binding made entirely of an unknown species of wood that was the color of ash. Across the cover and along its spine were strange markings that Lily recognized as the things a book seller at Flourish & Blotts had called 'runes'.

Hermione gave the two beside her a searching look. She had read a book that had said it was better to keep the identity of your magical foci a secret to keep its weakness hidden. But looking at the two strangely colored duo Hermione felt it would be safe to tell them. Besides, it wasn't like she would be able to keep it a secret for long anyway. After she showed up to class and had to cast spells while holding the book everyone would figure out what it was.

"It's my foci. From what the man who sold it to me said, it will start revealing rare spells to me once I become skilled enough to cast them." Lifting her wand-book up she showed them the blank pages it held.

"That's amazing." Harry commented with Lily nodding beside him. The young redhead was staring at the book with stars in her eyes.

"Something like that would have to be quite rare. I wonder what type of spells it will show you in the future."

The trio of first years soon lost track of time, and while Hermione was still reserved, she and the others enjoyed themselves as they spoke of what classes they were looking forward to, what spells they wanted to learn, and how they were each excited by the prospect of exploring Hogwarts's giant library.

Harry had many loves, drawing, playing and writing music, training and a good fight, but aside from these, his favorite pastime was reading anything he could get his hands on. However, his love of literature wasn't what was fueling his desire to find the library. He wanted to find out as much as he could about fairies and the side effects of engraving on another had on them.

"If you two want, you can go ahead of me to the library," Harry told them as they left the Great Hall. "I remember something Gellert told me about my mother's species, and I want to see if I inherited it from her."

"Can we come?" Lily asked her tone slightly pleading.

"I don't mind, but there's a chance it may not work and even if it does there's no telling if it will be anything either of you can understand."

Lily cheered loudly happy to be involved in anything that included spending more time with Harry. Hermione on the other hand looked torn. "If you don't want to come with us Hermione that's fine, I understand. But if you're unsure because you want to go to the library first I don't plan on being long..."

"Okay, I'll come along." she nodded.

"Great," he replied, heading for the entrance doors.

It was a bright sunny day on the Hogwarts grounds. The kind of day that made you want to be outside enjoying the sunshine, even if it was to only curl up under a tree with a good book. The breeze pulled gently at their hair and clothing as they moved across the castle grounds, bringing with it the smell of the grass, trees, and something that could only be described as nature.

"Where are we headed?" Hermione pondered out loud from her place in-between Harry and Lily, the latter of which was in her smaller form testing her flying speeds. So far she hadn't experienced any problems keeping up with her two companions and the leisurely pace they were moving at.

"Either to the tree I saw as we crossed the lake last night or to the edge of the Forbidden Forest."

Lily flew to his side and started to circle around him at dizzying speeds. "Why there?" Her small voice was almost lost on him from the speed at which she was flying at.

"From what Gellert told me my mother's people can communicate with animals and nature. I'm going to attempt it with a tree first and if I'm lucky we might run into an animal while we're out here."

"If you want animals, then the edge of the forest would be best place to go," Lily chirped.

"That's true, but you chance running into something that even if it can understand you it may not want to talk." Hermione pointed out without sounding worried about the thought of running into something that would want to hurt them.

"The forest it is then!" He exclaimed taking off for the closest stretch of forest. The wind whipped past him as the trees drew closer and Harry found that he enjoyed the feel of the air pulling at him as he pushed himself faster.

Reaching the tree line, Harry gave the restricted area that lined the edge of the school grounds a look over and came to the realization that the forest could earn its name of 'Forbidden' on appearances alone. From a distance the forest looked to be a huge, adventures place but that was nothing compared to being up close to it. The trees seemed to disappear into the sky, casting deep shadows that made it impossible for any normal person to see more than a few feet in. Harry wasn't normal.

The shadows that would hinder anyone else's sight didn't affect Harry's vision into the forest at all. As he gazed further into the woods (though the trees growing so close together made this difficult to do even without the shadows blocking his view) he instinctually knew his ability to control shadows was what allowed to him a un-obscured view through them.

"Harry!" Lily and Hermione called out to him in unison, sounding oddly far away. Turning around he saw that both girls were covering the last ten yards to the forest, moving at impressive speeds.

"What happened?" He wondered as the girls came to a stop in front of him, Lily on Hermione's shoulder. Before they answered him, he noticed that neither of the two looked in the least bit winded despite the speed they had been moving at.

"We were following you when you suddenly took off." Hermione told him, eyeing him curiously. "We tried to keeping pace with you, but it was futile. Simply put, you're too fast."

Lily nodded vigorously before launching herself off Hermione's shoulder to fly to his. "It was like you were blurring away from us."

Harry smiled sheepishly, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. "I didn't realize I was moving that fast... It goes to show I still have a lot to learn about myself now that I've been awakened." Hermione gave him a look letting him know that she agreed with what he had said before slowly her stare turned inquisitive as it shifted from him to Lily.

"Lily," Hermione said softly, "what's wrong?"

The small redhead was no longer paying her two friends any mind. Something behind them was calling out to her - not in words but with a gentle ringing that resounded through her. The song was magical and filled with emotion that beckoned her to the forest.

Jumping off Harry's shoulder she flew to the tree closest to her feeling the joyous sound grow in intensity the closer she got. Beating her tiny wings rapidly like a hummingbird, she hovered before the ancient tree listening intently.

"It's... speaking," she whispered, the awe she was experiencing floated back to her friends along with her voice. Placing her hand against the craggy, bark covered surface of the tree, she felt a deep mental connection form between her and it. "She says 'Greetings friends'," Lily repeated, a wide smile spreading across her face. "Hello to you as well my friend!" She greeted back, smiling at the piece of nature.

Lily grew quite as she listened to the tree. Whatever it was that it told her - Harry and Hermione didn't know - made the young girl's eyes light up with happiness. "Harry," she called out, turning to face him without removing her hand. "Come feel, she says you can speak to her as well!"

Harry looked to Hermione with slightly wide eyes wondering what he should do. He was worried that Lily was wrong and that he couldn't talk to nature, after all he didn't hear anything drawing him like it obviously had the part fairy. It would hurt him to not have this connection to his mother and that was exactly how he saw all the abilities he gained from her and his father, a connection.

The wavy haired girl shrugged her shoulders back at him, motioning for him to do what he had come here for.

"Lily, I can't hear anything," he told her without moving. As soon as he spoke he grew annoyed with himself for how whiny he must have sounded to his two new friends.

Lily huffed, making her small shoulders shake from the action. Taking her hand away from the tree she flew to the boy she had engraved on and grabbed a handful of his hair being careful not to hurt him. "Come on, if she says you can, you can."

Harry sighed, relenting to her summons he allowed himself to be pulled to the tree she had been communicating with. He came to a stop with a foot between him and the towering plant. Looking it over as he waited for it to say something to him.

"You're trying to be daft aren't you?" Lily asked. She looked to be growing upset with him and his attempts to be difficult, she couldn't see why he wouldn't want to experience something so amazing. "Place your hand against her; allow her to reach out to you."

Lifting his slightly shaking hand he placed it lightly against the tree. For the briefest of moments he didn't hear anything and started to grow disappointed that he wouldn't know what it was like to hear the same things as Susan had in her life. It was as he sent Lily a small shake of the head that he felt a tingling travel over the surface of his hand before it started sinking in and spreading throughout his body.

"She's not really speaking... is she? It's more of an empathic connection... but somehow stronger." Harry stated. He laughed when the ringing traveled through him - it was the tree telling him he was correct.

"See," Lily exclaimed, "she was right, you can do it."

"They're having fun," said a voice from behind Harry and Lily. It was followed by an amused sounding Hermione agreeing with the newcomer. Turning, Harry found himself facing the last of the Malfoy children.

"Hedwig, you're here!" Beaming he made his way over to her and gave her a small hug, noticing as he did so that she looked the same as she always had. "How was your awakening? Did you find out what you are?" In response she sent him the happiest smile he had ever seen her wear, it was like her face was set aglow by the joy she had just thinking about it.

"Would you like to see it?" She blurted excitedly.

Harry chuckled, nodding that he would. As he did so he noticed that Hermione had taken a few steps back, not knowing what type of transformation it was that his friend would be going through he copied the girl's example and took a few steps back.

Hedwig waited until Harry had stepped away before she gave a small nod, reassuring herself that she could do what she was about to attempt. Closing her eyes she focused on that part of her that she had only discovered the night before. When she next opened her eyes she was a foot taller than Harry. She had phased into a giant, snow colored owl.

"Hedwig... You're beautiful." Harry said breathlessly, his eyes traveled over every inch of her feathered form. This was different to anything else he had seen up to this point. Up until now all he had witnessed were humanoid transformations - to be able to shift into an animal looked amazing.

Hedwig was sure she would have been blushing had it been possible. "Thank you," she gushed, forgetting that it would come out as a bark, embarrassing herself. She had no way of knowing that he had the ability to understand her when he himself had yet to find out if it was one of the traits he had inherited from his mother.

Harry looked shocked when he was able to hear her words through the barking sound she had made. Realizing that he understood and what it meant he let a wide smile lose. "No problem, just telling it like I see it."

The amber eyes of the avian-girl widened as she turned her head in a very owlish way. "Can you understand me?" Hedwig barked. Harry beamed up at her, nodding.

"I'm taking it you can talk to animals as well?" Hermione asked stepping forward, splitting her gaze between looking at him questioningly and sending hesitant looks at Hedwig. The stares she was sending the now feathered girl were the same as the ones she had sent Lily and him when they had first joined her at breakfast earlier that morning. They had Harry wondering what it would be like to learn you were a part of such an amazing world only to end up surrounded by those who have even greater abilities than yourself. He didn't think she was jealous of them, but he did wonder if he would be able to say the same about himself if the situation were reversed.

"Yes and yes," he answered both girls. "Are you able to understand her too, Lily?"

"I'm afraid not," she called out to him as she flew around Hedwig, looking her friend of less than a day over. "I hope we can fly together some time." Lily said speaking to Hedwig. "It's an exhilarating experience, don't you agree?"

"It is," Hedwig barked, nodding so the small girl could understand her. "Harry," she said, gaining his attention, "tell her to hold on one second, I'm going to do something." As he did what was told of him Hedwig closed her eyes for a second time transforming once again, but this time instead of going back to her human form she shifted to the size of a normal owl. When her second change was done she took to the air and started flying around in circles with the giggling Lily.

"That does look fun," Harry commented covering the last of the distance between him and Hermione to stand by her side as they watched the girls fly with one another. "I can't wait until we get our first flying lessons."

"I'm anxious for all our lesions to start, but yes," she said looking away from the flying duo to him, "I can't wait to see what it's like to soar through the sky."

Harry smiled, knowing exactly what she meant. "Since it seems it's just you and me at the moment, why don't you tell me more about yourself?" He suggested as he made his way over to the tree and placed his hand against the tree he and Lily had been speaking to before.

Now that Harry had made contact with the tree he knew that unlike Lily he was unable to speak to plants unless he was physically touching them first. Pushing his question through his hand to the tree he received a positive reply that had him feeling its joy.

The tree's joy bleeding over to his own he turned around only to feel the smile he was wearing slip from his face. An offended looking Hermione was glaring at him like he had slighted her. Almost instantly he realized that she may have taken his earlier words as him speaking to the tree and blowing her off. "I was asking her if it would be alright for us to lean against her while we talked." He told her quickly, attempting to calm the upset girl.

"Oh," she gasped, suddenly looking ashamed of herself. "I'm sorry; I mistook you talking to the tree as you speaking to me. It angered me that you would blow me off like that and reminded me of unpleasant memories."

Harry looked to the still upset girl with a look of understanding. He knew the look she wore well - it was a look of loneliness that one would wear when they had no one their age to confide in. While he had gained many friends in his travels few were within twenty years of age of himself - It was one of the reasons that he was so much more mature than most of his year mates and even those who were older than him.

Sliding down the tree he patted the spot next to him, giving her a disarming smile. "I wouldn't dream of treating one of my friends in such a way."

Making her way over to him, she tucked her hands behind her knees folding the long, flowing skirt she was wear to her legs as she sat next to him. "What do you want to know?" She asked after they had sat for a time in silence.

"I don't know, I'm not really used to this sort of thing... Why not start with what it is your parents do for a living and go from there."

"Both my mother and father are retired members of the SAS, and now run their own private security firm."

"Wow," Harry chuckled, recalling the scars that had covered Dan and Emma. "Remind me never to anger either of your parents; it might end as badly for me as it does when I piss off Gellert."

"Gellert Grindelwald? The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor and from what I've read in Notable Modern Wizards, a war hero and scholar?" Harry nodded. "Now that I think about it, he's the one you were with at the Leaky Cauldron the first time we met. Is he your guardian?"

"Yeah, I've spent my entire life traveling with him." Harry told her sounding very nonchalant about the fact he had been around one of the living legends of the magic world all his life.

"That had to be fasci- Harry why is your shadow in my lap?" she asked sounding as if she didn't know if she should be upset or worried.

Her words taking him by surprise he looked over to see she was right, across not only her lap but her legs as well were the same black shadows as the night before. They seemed to be stretching out for him and soon he realized that the same was happening all around him. From within the forest snaked numerous dark tendrils made of shadow.

"Can you please stop them?" Hermione asked in a strained voice. Goose bumps had risen across her arms displaying how much it was freaking her out.

Harry could feel the connection between him and the shadows - his shadows, but was still unaware of how to control them. Not knowing what else to do he tried willing them to stop as he had the night before and was pleased to see them slow until their progression had stopped completely. He had noticed that unlike during the awakening when they had listened to him instantly and dropped away as soon as he was ready for them to, today they were sluggish in responding to his will.

Shrugging it off and figuring that he would have to learn to work on his control, he willed those that were on Hermione off of her and for the rest to come to him. When she was free of their grip Hermione rose to her feet, taking a few steps away to better watch as Harry was encompassed by shadows that flowed across the ground like water in a stream.

"Does this make you uncomfortable?" He noted the way she had jumped up as soon as she was free of the darkness' grasp. "I can stop if it does... though I wasn't doing it on purpose before, so there's no telling how long it will stay away."

"It wasn't that it made me uncomfortable, I'm only trying to give you space." She explained as her eyes trailed over the shadows that had started to rise upwards mimicking a circle of small, weak flames. "How did you do that?"

Harry didn't look away from the black flames as he answered her. "They answer to my will, but for some reason not as well as last night. I tried making them rise level with my head, not go a few inches off the ground and stop."

"It's possible they were hyper aware of your wants last night since they had been newly awakened," Hermione guessed. "Maybe now that they've had time to set you'll have to work with them before you have the level of control you did last night."

"I was thinking the same thing."

"Why not try using your power over light and see if its reaction time is lower too."

Harry took his eyes off the flames, with them dying as soon as he did, to look up at the girl. "How did you know it was light that I was controlling last night?"

"It's not that hard to figure out if you were paying attention to what was going on. Your shadows came from the shadows and the light came from the flames of the candles and torches in the Great Hall."

"You're as observant as your mother and father, aren't you?" Harry commented as he rose to his feet, not seeing the smile his words brought to her lips. "I don't know what I'm doing but let's give this a try." Closing his eyes he pulled for the same feeling he had experienced from the light the night before.

"It's working."

His eyes snapped open to see tendrils of solid white light racing for him, and as it had been with his shadows they were moving slower than they had the night before. "Well that answers that question." When the light reached the ring of shadows surrounding him they split making room for the light. As he watched he couldn't escape the feeling the light and shadow didn't want to touch each other.

Crouching down he touched his right hand to the black and his left to the white, commanding both to crawl up their respective arm. Once the opposite elements had reached up to his elbow he stopped anymore from rising and stood up. The smile he wore as he flexed his light and shadow covered hands was contagious. The contact he shared with his personal elements was amazing, the light felt as lite as a feather, and while the darkness felt just as light there was something about them that made them feel heavy.

"I wonder if I could shape this into clothing, or weapons... maybe into animals." Harry listed ideas that came to mind as he played around.

The joy he was experiencing as a result of all he had learned during the short time he had been awake made the normally very sharp minded boy careless. It was as he was attempting to will his shadows and light into designs on his arms that he did something that he would have normally known was unwise.

Reaching over he placed his light covered hand against the one cloaked in shadows. The result was a violent one. The second the two forces touched their reactions' were to be separated. Harry was lifted off his feet, slamming his back and head into the tree he had been sitting against minutes before.

There is a reason light and shadows are always next to one another but never become one. To try and force the two together was the same as someone being good and evil at the same time, to attempt to lite a fire at the bottom of the ocean, to give birth while being a virgin - it was simply impossible. He would realize this when he awoke in the hospital wing hours later. But as he lay in bed that night thinking over his rash actions he would also realize that if someone performed an evil deed to save a life they could be considered good. That with magic he bet you _could_ start a fire under water, and that with the advances in science and technology today, it was very much possible for a virgin to give birth... Some believed such an act had already happened. What was there to stop him from doing the impossible as well?

**AN: Remember I said this chapter was HARD on me when you review it. I actually rewrote it a few times and just couldn't find any... balance? So the next chapter will see things moving along and won't be a filler like this one was. And just to stop any worrying, Harry will be friends with more than just girls in this. I'll be introducing his house mates next chapter and you'll get to see what type of creatures his room mates will be. **

**Just to cover something that I'm not sure if people have noticed, Harry and Draco's relationship will be a complicated one. At times they might be the best of mates at others they could hate each others guts. As for Harry his alignment is no where near set in stone. I'm not saying he's going to go dark, but the chances of him always doing what's right isn't set in stone. **


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: This chapter was supposed to be far longer than it is, but with my lack of updates, my busy schedule, and my sudden and all consuming bout of procrastination I figured it best to post something. I find it hard to work on this story when each chapter gets less and less reviews... I'd like to thank Joe Lawyer for beta'ing even though he's been as busy as I am lately.**

* * *

Daggers held loosely in hand, his foci entwined tightly between his fingers and around the violet-shaded skin of his forearm, Harry glared intently at the ancient man across from him. His normally pristine clothing was ripped and singed, showing off more of his abnormally colored skin, and the freshly bleeding cuts and midnight-shaded bruises he had acquired since entering the room hours before.

Standing across from the white-haired youth, a wand in one hand a rapier in the other was none other than his surrogate grandfather, Gellert Grindelwald.

Harry focused his enhanced sight entirely on the man before him, watching for the smallest of tells that would give away any holes in the man's seemingly nonexistent defense. And yet, even though he was giving the only other soul in the room his full attention, his new senses were serving to be as much of a distraction as they were a help.

The way the early morning light streamed through the glassless windows catching the dust motes as they swam through the air, drew the eye like a moth to a flame. The pounding of not only his own heartbeat, but that of the man in front of him, both strong and steady, beating within the span of a hummingbird's wings of each other. And the smell... The smell was by far the worst and most distracting. The dry, stale scent of dust mixed with that of the pipe smoke that clung to Gellert, rat feces hidden in the corners of the room and in the desks that had been pushed against the walls and out of the way, and for some strange reason lemon flavored sweets, all combined in a nauseating and head throbbing smell that made him wish he didn't feel the need to become accustomed to his new senses.

"Mind telling me why it is that even now, when my speed far surpasses your own, I'm still unable to land a hit on you?" Despite the state he was in, the young boy's normal tone and demeanor hadn't slipped in the slightest. "In fact, if I didn't know any better, I'd say I've gotten _worse_ in terms of my fighting ability since the awakening ceremony." He gazed inquisitively into aquamarine eyes of his teacher, steeling himself from tracking the millions upon millions of dust motes dancing through the air between them.

"Perhaps you're not as good as you previously thought," Gellert lightly suggested, gazing down the length of his rapier with an appraising eye. Turning his focus from his weapon of choice, excluding the times when his wand was available to him, he was rewarded with a dry, knowing look from his apprentice/grandson.

"I prefer dueling with a wand opposed to that of hand-to-hand combat, or the use of styles that require a weapon, such as knives, clubs, swords," here Gellert held his rapier up in a loose grip, "and the like. As such, I'm not as versed in their use as I should be. When forced to rely on such methods in combat my prowess is severely hampered. To the point that I, a man who is acutely aware that there are few in this world who can pose a challenge for me when I hold a wand, am weakened to the point that _many_ an individual with power far weaker than my own, could easily best me."

Harry arched a snow-colored eyebrow at his teacher. "If you wouldn't mind, a translation would be greatly appreciated?"

"What I'm saying is that you're not getting worse; _I'm_ increasing the level of our spars by introducing the use of magic. When I first used spells during your training I barely used any magic at all, just enough so you could become accustomed to its presence in battle, but since your awakening I've upped the number of incantations I use," Gellert admitted. "Had I continued to fight without my foci, or continued to use the same level of magic as I did just before you came to Hogwarts, then yes, you would have landed a blow on my person by now."

"Would I be correct in guessing that you're never going to let me hit you?" Harry questioned impassively, his stance never faltering.

"If I simply _let_ you hit me, you'd gain nothing from this, making all the time I've spent training you a waste." The tip of his blade pointed directly between Harry's eyes, his wand clapped loosely at his side but still managing to point it at his student, Gellert let his eyes flash with power for the briefest of seconds. "And my time is _not_ to be wasted."

Seeing the unspoken sign, Harry charged forward, his wrists held atop one another and in front of him, the tips of his blades touching. Focusing with all the might he could muster and still keep his awareness of his surroundings, he pulled at the shadows behind Gellert. Though they didn't respond as quickly as they would have had he been focused solely on them, the shadows at the back of the room did answer his call, sluggishly slinking their way across the stone floor toward the unsuspecting man.

Gellert watched his student charge at impressive speeds, a look of disinterest gracing his aged, but handsome features. Raising his wand he shot a large, albeit slow moving, ball of white-hot fire at the boy.

Wincing at the heat rolling his way, Harry put on an extra boost of speed showing no sign of dodging, bringing him closer to the deadly fire faster. At the last second when Gellert expected his pupil to dash around the ball of element, Harry pushed himself backwards falling to his side, letting his momentum slide him painfully across the dust coated floor and under the intense sphere of fire.

Clearing the fire, his face and the exposed skin of his torso feeling sore and tight from his close proximity to the man's attack, Harry rolled to the side just as Gellert slashed downward with a whip of fire, cracking the stone floor where it hit. Pointing the hand that held both a dagger and foci at the teacher's desk in the corner of the room, Harry levitated it up and at Gellert.

Catching sight of the desk from the corner of his eye, Gellert slashed downward with the whip once more, knowing that while the levitation speed was both impressive and fast, it was not fast enough to catch him. His bluish-green eyes tightened when he felt the element flowing from his wand catch his grandson in the shoulder, tearing into his tattered shirt and flesh.

Just as the boy screamed out in pain, Gellert made to dodge the desk hurtling towards him, knowing he would be out of the object's trajectory by only inches, when he suddenly and unexpectedly found himself unable to move his feet. Acting on instincts that he had acquired early on in life, he directed his wand at the desk that was only seconds away from colliding with him, banishing it out of the air without looking at it.

The threat of the desk taken care of, Gellert looked to his feet to see them and slowly the rest of his legs being ensnared in the same inky-black shadows that James had been so well known for. Having dueled with the deceased Potter many times before his death, he knew casting a simple light-spell wouldn't rid him of the black tendrils.

Shooting a cutting curse, that was both over powered and on the darker end of the light-dark spectrum, at the shadows, Gellert was able to free himself. Kicking off the last remains of the darkness that was clinging to him, he glanced up to find Harry no longer lying on the floor. Turning quickly, he spotted his young student charging at him from behind, his blades poised, ready to strike a fatal blow. It was as he raised his wand to fire off a stronger sister-spell of the Aguamenti charm that he saw the boy's left hand flash out throwing his dagger toward him.

Shaking his head in disappointment - he had warned the boy against throwing away his weapons on more than one occasion - Gellert prepared to knock the dagger out of the air with his rapier, but lost track of the projectile and everything else when a searing-white light filled the entire room, blinding and disorienting the veteran wizard.

His eyes stinging and burning, and knowing the dagger was still coming his way, he quickly erected a shield and fired off a wide-area stunner.

When his eyes cleared and he could once again see, he was greeted by the sight of his pupil lying on the ground unconscious, his daggers lying on either side of him.

Shaking his head at the sight, Gellert cursed himself. 'I take him too lightly, and just about let him get that 'hit' he wants so badly.'

HSFMB

"Was it really necessary to stun me?"

"I could have fired another wave of flame at you instead," Gellert said with a noticeable lack of sympathy in his tone.

"Knowing you that's exactly the type of thing you'd do just to teach me a lesson." Harry replied dryly. Paying the aching in his limbs, and the rest of his body that hurt just as much no mind, he rose to his feet, gingerly tensing and testing for anything more serious than the brutal blow he had received to the shoulder. "I'm not going to Poppy again. Twice in a week was pushing it, if I go back to her before Christmas of next year she's liable to chain me to her desk."

Crossing the small distance between the two of them, Harry positioned his burnt throbbing shoulder out to the older man. "The adrenaline is wearing off, I'm starting to feel it more-and-more."

"Hold still or I may just end up injuring you more than I help you." Running his long elder-wood wand over the wound, Gellert nodded to himself calling out for an elf that showed up right away. "When did you discover a way to use your light in such a manner?" he questioned after sending the house-elf off to acquire the potions he was to need.

Harry started to answer, but stopped and gritted his teeth when a stab of pain shot through his arm. Gellert had just cast a spell that felt like many fingers being jabbed repeatedly into the wound. Glaring down at his shoulder Harry found the exposed, nasty looking injury to be encompassed in a dark yellow haze.

"The first night I stayed in the boys' dormitory I awoke sometime after midnight and couldn't fall back to sleep. It didn't help any that I had figured out upon waking that my vision at night is as good as it is during the day." Gellert nodded to this, he had expected as much, not that Harry had noticed his grandfather's knowing look, as he was far too distracted by the nagging, sharp bursts of pain shooting through his shoulder. "With nothing else to do, I figured I'd pass the time by trying to get a better control over my light and shadows." He became silent when the elf returned with a silver tray and a number of vials full of potions atop it.

After making Harry drink the last and by far the _worst_ tasting potions, Gellert started tracing the edges of the burn with his wand. "Continue."

"Well, I tried calling on my light, but it didn't come as easily as it normally does. Admittedly, calling out to my elements is never _easy_, but this time no matter how hard I pulled at my light it wouldn't come. It wasn't until then that I realized I was in a room full of darkness, so I figured that I'd have to try harder than normal to make it appear."

"Your father used to say that while he could call out his shadows in a room that held none, it was far harder for him to do so than when there were plenty abound." Gellert informed him, as he started knitting the wound closed.

Harry hissed, the pain in shoulder had become worse since Gellert had started working on it and had the boy wondering if his grandfather wasn't enjoying his discomfort on some level. "Yeah well, I figured the same about my light," he replied, his tone a mixture of pain and amusement. "I started focusing with all my might on calling it to me, when suddenly the entire dorm room was filled with the same light I used against you in our spar." Here he stopped speaking, letting his laughter overtake him despite the pain he was experiencing in his shoulder.

"There, you're done." Gellert pulled away from where the wound had once been to reveal an angry red mark in its place. "Now please do tell, what is so funny?"

His laughter dying down to a soft chuckle, Harry inspected the area while he spoke. "The light startled all of my dorm mates awake. I don't know if you've ever had the pleasure of scaring a spider-demon, a part leprechaun, a ginger with arachnophobia, and a boy who's as new to the world of magic as I am, all at once, but if you ever do, do it!"

"I'm surprised that you're still here to tell the tale." Reaching into his suit he pulled out a final potion vial. "Drink this and the pain should subside until it dies away completely."

"After everything had calmed down, and I explained my mess up to them, everyone thought it was pretty funny. Especially Seamus, but then again that may have been his leprechaun half making him see the situation as if it were a prank." Pulling the cork out of the vial, Harry quickly downed the potion ignoring the taste as best he could.

"So one of your roommates is afraid of the Longbottom heir?" Gellert questioned, interested in how his first week of school had been. Other than when he called on him during his class, he had been unable to speak with his grandson since his last visit to the infirmary.

"Yeah, the youngest Weasley, Ron. He gets the shakes anytime Neville speaks to him. We asked why he was so afraid, but all we ever get in return is something about his 'teddy'." As the pain dulled to a slight throb, Harry started rolling his shoulder experimentally. "Thanks."

It was an hour later that Harry and Gellert, who had continued to talk up to now, found themselves about to be late for their first classes of the day. Harry dashed out the room not wanting to be late for potions, knowing he had to get all the way to his dorm, get changed, and then make it all the way back down to the dungeons where his first double period with professor Snape was to take place.

Gellert followed his grandson at a leisurely pace, unconcerned about being on time since he _was_ the professor. Just as he was about to leave the unused room they had adopted for his grandson's training, he found his way blocked by Harry, who had returned for some unknown reason.

"I was hoping you could answer a question for me." Harry asked, bouncing lightly as he knew he was wasting time that could have been used to get ready.

"You may, whether or not I'll answer is a different matter altogether."

"What is it that Albus is hiding on the third floor?"

HSFMB

"I'm not late. I'm not late. I'm not late." His continued mantra was Harry's only companion as he raced through the twists and turns of the dungeons in search of the potions lab.

After getting what he dubbed a 'half-assed answer' from Gellert about what it was that Albus was hiding, Harry had made his way up four floors to the Gryffindor tower only to find a deserted common room. Knowing the chances of his dorm mates still being in their dorm at this time was low, he ran upstairs to find it as empty as he had expected.

'_I do well all week by being on time to all my classes, then I just have to go and be late to the final one of the week!_' he thought as he rounded a corner, his chant still spilling from his lips.

"I'm not lat-" His mantra died on his tongue when he saw that he was in fact _not_ late. Unnoticed by those gathered Harry came to a sliding stop, taking in the scene before him.

On one side of the dungeon hallway stood the Gryffindors all of which looked angry, none more so than the resident redhead of the male first years' dorm. Standing just across from the furious pride were the Slytherins. Where the Gryffindors looked angry most of the snakes looked on with obvious boredom or disapproval. However, not all of the Slytherins were reacting in such a manner. A small gathering of boys, two of which were Theodore Nott and Draco, were smirking superiorly at Ron which only served to enrage the redhead further.

Just when Harry was about to announce his arrival and try to figure out what it was that had put his friends so on edge, the door to the potions lab swung open. After a second in which no one moved, and more than one of them pondered on who had open the door, a soft commanding voice called through the open doorway startling half of the first years.

"There will be no petty inter-house squabbling while attending my lessons, or I will be forced to end them for you. Now then, _please_ enter my classroom prepared to learn." As the bodiless voice ghosted over them the tension in the angry Gryffindors' shoulders and the antagonistic way the four Slytherin boys held themselves faded away.

Still unaware that their missing friend was standing behind them, the Gryffindors made their way into the potions lab, Ron throwing a dirty look over his shoulder at Theodore as he went, the Slytherins following closely behind.

With light steps carrying him across the threshold Harry was the final student to enter the potions classroom. Glancing around the room he found the only table not completely occupied, to be one that held three girls wearing Slytherin colors, one of which he had met before.

Walking up to the three, all of whom were watching the same hooked nosed man that had nodded to Harry the night of the awakening, he set his things down not bothering to look who it was he had sit next to, instead he followed the girls' lead and turned his focus on the professor.

"Potions is a very deadly, precise art." The sallow skinned man announced, drawing the attention of those who had yet to look his way. "If used correctly anything is within the realm of possibility, _if_ you have the know-how and the will to dedicate yourself to learning the secrets hidden within your cauldron. If disrespected and treated like a knut shop bake sale, then you may doom yourself and those next to you to an early grave... or worse." The man turned his coal-colored eyes on all of them in an attempt to show them how serious he was.

"My name is Professor Severus Snape, and I will be your potions instructor for the next seven years. Leading you through the immensely rewarding, yet frequently underappreciated world of potions making. Together we will succeed, and at times we will fail... By the time I am done with this class, every soul in this room will be able to brew the most difficult of potions with ease."

From his spot in the back of the room, Harry could see that most of the class had slightly awed looks about them as they gazed wide-eyed at the potions master. Lily and Hermione, both of whom were seated at the front of the room paying the man rapt attention, along with Parvati, a pretty dark skinned elemental demon, and Lavender Brown, looked close to slipping off the edges of their seats as they leaned forward, neither wanting to miss a single iota of knowledge.

Over the past week he had developed friendships with all of the first year Gryffindors, though none were stronger than the quickly growing bond between Lily, Hermione and himself. After becoming accustomed to Lily's sudden affection for him, a part of her he now knew would always be a part of their friendship, and stopping Hermione's recurring attempts to distance herself from not only him and Lily, but everyone around her, he had learned both girls shared a deep passion for learning that Harry was happy to see he wasn't alone in possessing.

'_Those two have to be related somehow,_' Harry mused lightly, chuckling internally as he fixed his attention back on the potions master.

"If you would please take out your books and the extra parchment that was required for my class," Professor Snape ordered softly, as he strolled around the room watching his students. "There will be times when I will deviate from the course manuals to teach you my own preferred, and often self-discovered, methods. When I do so I will inform you, and you will be expected to take notes."

"I have spent over thirty years of my life dedicated to learning the secrets of potion making. Discovering the ins-and-outs of a simmering cauldron, the ways to save a life with an only few key ingredients, and how to end the same life with less." The intense passion in the ponytail wearing man's voice as he spoke of the field of magic he had studied all his life was infectious to the first years, creating a smaller, and yet still similar, burn to learn the art of potion making themselves. "As such, there are things I know that others only wished they did. I intend to pass on as much of this knowledge to you and your peers as I possibly can. There will be much for you to take in over the course of your first year and the six that will follow it - putting it all to parchment will serve to help you better memorize all I have to impart."

Coming to a stop at the front of the room and his pupils, his long black robes billowing softly around him in a nonexistent breeze, the professor fixed them with a critical eye taking the time to look at them all individually before he continued speaking. "Now then, let us begin...

After explaining the importance of getting the heat of your cauldron's flame just right, and the properties of the ingredients they would be using during their current class and the best way to utilize them to their full potential, Professor Snape set them off on working on their first potion as his students.

Harry had just returned from the supply closet with the needed porcupine quills and snake fangs for boil cure they were attempting, when across from him the same girl he had met before arrived with her own supplies.

"How have you been _James_?" Lily Moon asked sounding bored, her blue, red, white, and yellow tipped hair swaying softly around her shoulders.

The Potter and Bones heir winced, when he had taken a seat with the group of Slytherin females, he had failed to remember that during his first encounter with Lily at Madam Malkin Robes, that he had told her and Sue Li that his name was James.

"Yeah, about that-" Harry was cut off before he could finish by the arrival of the girl that had been sitting next to Lily when he had first sat down with them.

"Blaise, I'd like for you to meet _James_." Lily skillfully crushed her snake fangs, with a slightly smug smirk on her lips.

Chuckling, Harry raised his eyes from the flame of his cauldron, catching those of the girl named Blaise. Her shiny brown hair hung just above her shoulders, accenting her darker than average tanned skin and piercing, pride filled icy-blue eyes that reminded him of a husky's. Instinctual, he knew right away that the attractive girl before him was a proud, strong creature, who wouldn't take any form of disrespect.

Blaise trailed her eyes over the purple skinned, special eyed youth without showing any sign of approval or disapproval. Had Harry been expecting any form of response he would have been left sorely wanting. Continuing her lack of any emotion, outside her obvious and unmistakable abundance of pride, she turned her attention to starting her cauldron fire, looking as if she hadn't just been introduced to him.

Harry arched a questioning eyebrow at Lily, whom he was surprised to see looking a bit disappointed by the girl's lack of response.

"What, no cutting remarks? No 'filthy mutt' comments? Not even a little bit about how you're a 'pure-blooded alpha female' and that you refuse to be disrespected?" From the way Lily spoke it was quite clear that not only had she heard Blaise say such things in the past, but that she had been expecting her to react in much the same way now.

"I'd suggest you focus on your work, _mutt_." Blaise said in a soft, cutting voice. "And you can stop trying to drag me into your little games. If you want someone insulted, do it yourself!" Harry watched, wide eyed, as Lily's soft brown eyes started flashing through the same colors that the tips of her hair were dyed. Blue flashed into red, red melted into white, white shifted into yellow, and yellow blazed back into blue before the cycle started again, each circulation going faster than the one before it until her eyes were nothing more than a blur of colors.

"Watch it, _bitch_!" she hissed in a smokey, venom filled voice. Raising her small hand, Lily gave each of her fingers the lightest of twitches, surprising Harry further when they burst into flames the same color as the tips of her hair, and now eyes. "It's true, my mama and papa may be of different flame races, but both are purebloods of their respective races, and much like our purple-skinned friend here, that makes me _so_ much more than your average magical species!" Glaring heatedly at Blaise, who acted as if she hadn't heard a word that had been said to her, Lily placed her hand under her cauldron starting its flame without removing her eyes from her agitator.

"Wow," Harry chuckled, drawing the color-shifting eyes of Lily, and a slight tensing of Blaise's shoulders that let him know she was paying him attention. "Both of my table mates are badasses and a bit testy. I wonder how much of a joy our fourth is going to be."

Harry had expected any number of responses from the duo of pretty Slytherins across from him, anger at being called 'testy', laughter at his 'badass' comment, and even indifference to it all from Blaise, but the looks the two sent him made it feel as if he had missed a step going down a flight of stairs.

Both shock and fear filled the eyes of Lily, as she glanced around them, her head jerking wildly in all directions looking for the still unidentified (to Harry) student. Whereas Lily searched for their fourth and final table mate, Blaise fixed Harry with icy-blue eyes swimming with emotion that he failed to decipher.

"Careful," Blaise whispered, her eyes never leaving his. "It would be the epitome of stupidity to anger B-" Before the husky-eyed girl could finish speaking the fourth member of their party arrived at their table, drawing the attention of all its occupants onto her person.

The figure before Harry was as stunning as any of the girls that he had found himself enjoying the company of as of late. Her long, wavy, raven-shaded locks hung to her hips, framing her iridescent-violent eyes and her alabaster, aristocratic features.

Realizing he was rudely staring at the new arrival, Harry gave her a small, welcoming wave. "Hello, my name is Harry Po-" His greeting died on his lips the second his eyes met hers. Staring back at him were iridescent violet-orbs filled with a twisted and dangerous mirth so intense he was forced to stop himself from flinching away from the girl's gaze.

"Harry Potter," she supplied in a voice reminiscent of silver bells ringing on a frosty winter night. "I know who you are." Her tone mysterious, she fixed him with a smile that sent chills down his spine.

"Allow me to introduce myself." Holding out her hand, the back raised as if she were waiting for Harry to place a kiss upon it. Not seeing a way out of the gesture without being rude, Harry took her hand in his, brushing his lips lightly against her soft, creamy white skin.

"I," Harry glanced up meeting her eyes, "am Bellatrix Lestrange, heiress and future head of the Ancient and Noble House of Lestrange..." Leaning up, so that their foreheads were touching in a way that could only be described as 'intimate', Bellatrix tightened her grip painfully on Harry's hand. "And the one whom will bring about the end of both the Bones and Potter lines!"

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**AN: So yup, Bellatrix is the daughter of her husband in canon. Didn't see that coming, did ya? As I hinted at above, more reviews equals faster and more frequent updates. Till next time!**


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